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Last Monday, amid a combined address by American leader Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the Knesset, colleague lawmaker Ayman Odeh and I displayed a sign calling for the acknowledgment of the Palestinian state. We were violently ejected from the legislative session, revealing the fragile condition of what's frequently portrayed as the "only democratic state in the region". How can leaders speak about regional peace while refusing to acknowledge a population denied of basic liberties and rights under decades-long military control?

The Situation in the Occupied West Bank

Nowhere is the hypocrisy more evident than in the occupied West Bank. There, talk of reconciliation seem remote and faint, while the terrifying sounds of settler violence and intimidation continue strongly. Over 30 incidents of violence by settlers against Palestinian civilians have been documented since the announcement of the Trump administration's 20-point plan in late September, including physical assaults, theft of crops, and torching of vehicles and belongings.

Systematic Aggression During Agricultural Period

The rise in violence by colonists is not coincidental. This time signals the beginning of agricultural harvesting. More than a vital economic activity, it represents an significant social and cultural moment that shows resilience under occupation. Precisely for these reasons, year after year colonists target Palestinians during this precious period. During the last year's agricultural season, human rights organizations recorded 113 separate cases of violence, harassment, preventing harvesting, or destruction to olive trees and produce involving settlers and soldiers, which occurred on lands owned by 51 Palestinian-owned villages, towns, and communities.

Israeli security forces appeared to have had a larger part in obstructing the olive harvest

Yesh Din also found that "Israeli military appeared to have had a larger part in hindering the harvesting season". In approximately 70% of instances where entry to farmland was violently blocked, troops, border guards, and settlement civilian security coordinators were actually on site. They either personally stopped Palestinians from accessing and gathering their property, or neglected to stop settlers who threatened or attacked them.

Government Support for Settler Activities

This comes as no surprise, as the head of the colonists' political movement, Bezalel Smotrich, was named as an extra minister in the Defense Ministry in charge of the Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories. In Umm al-Khair, for example, a particular military coordination team uprooted private olive trees of local residents, claiming missing documentation, but overlooked infractions by an illegal adjacent settler outpost. Last week, the Jerusalem district court decided to stop all building work in the encampment, which was constructed on lands taken by Israeli authorities and unlawfully transferred to settlers.

Takeover Goals and Global Reaction

In the controlled West Bank, settler terrorism is simply a instrument used by the government to achieve de-facto annexation. Recently, Smotrich led a march of thousands of colonists in favor of taking over the West Bank. He was quoted as saying, "We persist to establish presence with our presence of the Land of Israel with numerous settlers, many heroes, and hundreds of thousands of colonists who reside in this area of the territory ... we must to normalize it and make it eternal."

The settlers and their supporters in the Knesset are explicit about their motives and intentions. Why, then, do political leaders in the Western nations hesitate from substantial penalties and diplomatic measures? Smotrich was penalized by the UK in June, but the effect of the sanction has been minimal. He may not be permitted to travel to the United Kingdom and tour the London's entertainment district, but he still enjoys the governmental authority to take lands in the West Bank. Remarkably in the announcement of penalties, the UK highlighted they apply "personally" solely.

International Recognition and Reality

If the UK government recognizes the truth of colonist aggression and its grave implications on Palestinian life, why does it still allow settlement produce to be sold in markets and shops in Britain? If the British leader is genuine about recognition of Palestine as a state, how come he permit the Israeli administration to breach its sovereignty with such violent means? Or was the acknowledgment an empty tactic to shut down dissenting voices in the UK, a meaningless act only to be implemented in the relabeling of some maps?

Pathway to Genuine Peace

A just resolution must respect the fundamental rights of the Palestinian people for self-recognition, sovereignty, and freedom from occupation and siege. Only when each human being's worth across the river and sea is respected can we genuinely declare peace has been attained.

Genuine resolution requires an independent Palestinian state next to Israel: this is the sole formula that enjoises consensus among the international community, the Palestinian leadership, and the Israeli peace camp.

Trump may have applied pressure on the Israeli leader to stop the violence, but he likely only did so because the burden of his connection with the isolated government of Netanyahu had become too great. The mass protests across the globe for the liberation of Palestinian territories, and the unwavering opposition protests within Israel, are the actual factors behind this influence.

It is thanks to this enormous public campaign that a ceasefire has been signed, the hostages released, and the people of Gaza can enjoy safeguard from destruction. After the ceasefire agreement has been finalized, it is crucial to keep applying this pressure. The world has turned a blind eye to the atrocities in the strip for many years; it must not make the same mistake in the West Bank.