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Last week, amid a joint speech by American leader Donald Trump and Israel's PM Benjamin Netanyahu at the Israeli parliament, fellow parliamentarian Ayman Odeh and I displayed a banner calling for the recognition of the Palestinian state. We were violently removed from the legislative session, exposing the weak state of what's often portrayed as the "only democracy in the Middle East". How can leaders speak about regional peace while refusing to acknowledge a people deprived of basic liberties and entitlements under decades-long military control?

The Situation in the Occupied West Bank

In no place is the hypocrisy more evident than in the occupied West Bank. There, words of peace sound remote and weak, while the frightening echoes of settler violence and intimidation persist loudly. Over 30 occurrences of violence by settlers against Palestinian civilians have been documented since the unveiling of the Trump administration's 20-point plan in September's end, including attacks, theft of crops, and burning of cars and belongings.

Targeted Violence During Agricultural Period

The rise in settler terrorism is deliberate. This time marks the start of harvest seasons. Beyond a crucial economic activity, it represents an important communal and national occasion that shows endurance under occupation. Exactly for these reasons, year after year colonists target Palestinian farmers during this precious period. During the last year's agricultural season, rights groups documented 113 separate incidents of violence, intimidation, harvest-thwarting, or destruction to olive groves and produce by Israeli civilians and military personnel, which took place on territories belonging to 51 Palestinian villages, municipalities, and areas.

Israeli military appeared to have had a greater part in obstructing the olive harvest

The human rights group also discovered that "Israel's military appeared to have had a larger role in hindering the harvesting season". In about 70% of cases where access to farmland was forcibly prevented, troops, border guards, and settler civilian security coordinators were actually present. They either directly prevented Palestinian farmers from accessing and harvesting their own lands, or neglected to stop colonists who harassed or attacked them.

Political Backing for Colonization

This comes as no surprise, as the head of the colonists' political movement, Bezalel Smotrich, was named as an additional minister in the Ministry of Defence in charge of the territorial coordination unit. In one village, for instance, a special COGAT unit uprooted private olive plants of local residents, claiming missing documentation, but overlooked violations by an unauthorized adjacent settler outpost. Last week, the Jerusalem district court decided to stop all construction in the encampment, which was constructed on lands seized by Israel and unlawfully given to settlers.

Takeover Goals and Global Response

In the controlled West Bank, settler terrorism is simply a instrument used by the government to achieve practical annexation. Earlier this month, Smotrich headed a procession of thousands of settlers in support of annexation the West Bank. He was reported as stating, "We persist to establish presence with our presence of the Land of Israel with numerous settlers, numerous champions, and hundreds of thousands of colonists who live in this part of the land ... we must to normalize it and make it eternal."

The colonists and their backers in the Knesset are clear about their intentions and intentions. Why, then, do government officials in the west hesitate from meaningful sanctions and diplomatic measures? Smotrich was penalized by the United Kingdom in June, but the effect of the sanction has been minimal. He may not be permitted to travel to the UK and visit the West End, but he still maintains the ministerial power to take lands in the West Bank. Even in the declaration of penalties, the British government highlighted they take place "in his personal capacity" solely.

Global Acknowledgment and Reality

If the British administration acknowledges the reality of settler violence and its serious consequences on Palestinian existence, why does it still allow goods from settlements to be sold in stores and shops in the UK? If Starmer is serious about recognition of Palestine as a state, how can he allow the Israeli government to breach its sovereignty with such aggressive methods? Or was the recognition an hollow tactic to silence opposition in the UK, a hollow gesture only to be implemented in the relabeling of some cartographic representations?

Pathway to True Resolution

A fair resolution must respect the basic rights of the Palestinian people for self-recognition, independence, and liberty from occupation and siege. Only when each person's dignity between the river and sea is respected can we genuinely say peace has been achieved.

True resolution demands an sovereign Palestinian nation next to Israel: this is the sole formula that has consensus among the international community, the Palestinian leadership, and the Israeli peace advocates.

The former US president may have applied pressure on the Israeli leader to halt the violence, but he probably only did so because the strain of his connection with the pariah regime of the Israeli PM had become excessive. The large demonstrations throughout the globe for the freedom of Palestine, and the persistent anti-government protests within the country, are the actual forces behind this influence.

It is thanks to this massive public campaign that a truce has been signed, the captives released, and the residents of the territory can enjoy safeguard from annihilation. After the truce arrangement has been signed, it is vital to continue maintaining this pressure. The world has ignored to the atrocities in the strip for too long; it must not repeat the same mistake in the West Bank.