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Last Monday, amid a combined address by American leader Donald Trump and Israel's PM Benjamin Netanyahu at the Knesset, fellow parliamentarian Ayman Odeh and I raised a banner calling for the recognition of Palestine. We were forcibly ejected from the legislative assembly, revealing the weak state of what's frequently portrayed as the "sole democracy in the region". How can leaders speak about regional peace while refusing to acknowledge a people denied of fundamental liberties and rights under long-standing occupation?

The Situation in the Occupied West Bank

In no place is the deceit more apparent than in the controlled West Bank. There, words of reconciliation sound remote and faint, while the terrifying echoes of settler violence and terror continue loudly. Over 30 incidents of violence by settlers against Palestinian civilians have been recorded since the announcement of the US peace proposal in September's end, including attacks, stealing of agricultural produce, and burning of cars and belongings.

Targeted Violence During Agricultural Period

The increase in settler terrorism is not coincidental. This period signals the beginning of agricultural harvesting. More than a vital economic event, it constitutes an significant communal and cultural moment that demonstrates endurance under military rule. Exactly for these reasons, year after year colonists attack Palestinians during this crucial time. During the last year's agricultural season, human rights organizations documented 113 separate cases of aggression, intimidation, harvest-thwarting, or damage to olive groves and crops involving Israeli civilians and military personnel, which took place on lands owned by 51 Palestinian-owned communities, towns, and communities.

Israel's military appeared to have played a greater part in hindering the olive harvest

The human rights group also found that "Israel's military seemed to have had a greater role in obstructing the harvesting season". In about 70% of instances where entry to farmland was forcibly prevented, troops, border police officers, and settlement security officials were actually present. They either personally stopped Palestinian farmers from reaching and gathering their own lands, or neglected to prevent colonists who harassed or attacked them.

Political Backing for Settler Activities

This comes as no surprise, as the leader of the colonists' political movement, Bezalel Smotrich, was appointed as an extra minister in the Defense Ministry in charge of the territorial coordination unit. In Umm al-Khair, for instance, a special military coordination team uprooted personally-owned olive trees of Palestinians, citing lack of permits, but overlooked infractions by an unauthorized adjacent settler outpost. Last week, the Jerusalem district court ruled to stop all building work in the encampment, which was constructed on property taken by Israel and unlawfully given to settlers.

Takeover Goals and International Response

In the controlled West Bank, colonist violence is simply a tool used by the government to pursue de-facto incorporation. Recently, Smotrich headed a procession of many of colonists in support of taking over the West Bank. He was reported as saying, "We are continuing to establish presence with our feet of the territory with many settlers, many heroes, and countless of colonists who live in this area of the land ... we must to normalize it and establish it permanently."

The colonists and their supporters in the Knesset are explicit about their motives and intentions. Why, then, do government officials in the west refrain from meaningful sanctions and diplomatic measures? Smotrich was penalized by the United Kingdom in June, but the impact of the penalty has been limited. He may not be able to go to the United Kingdom and tour the West End, but he still enjoys the ministerial power to seize lands in the West Bank. Even in the declaration of sanctions, the UK emphasized they take place "in his personal capacity" only.

International Recognition and Actual Situation

If the British administration acknowledges the reality of settler violence and its serious consequences on Palestinian existence, why does it still permit goods from settlements to be sold in stores and shops in the UK? If Starmer is serious about acknowledging Palestinian statehood as a sovereign entity, how can he allow the Israeli administration to breach its sovereignty with such violent means? Or was the acknowledgment an empty ploy to shut down dissenting voices in the United Kingdom, a hollow act only to be realised in the rebranding of some cartographic representations?

Route Toward True Peace

A just peace must honor the fundamental entitlements of the Palestinian population for self-recognition, independence, and liberty from military occupation and siege. Only when each person's worth across the Jordan River and sea is respected can we genuinely say reconciliation has been attained.

True peace requires an sovereign Palestinian state next to Israel: this is the only solution that enjoises consensus among the global community, the Palestinian leadership, and the Israeli peace advocates.

The former US president may have inflicted pressure on the Israeli leader to stop the violence, but he likely only did so because the burden of his connection with the pariah regime of the Israeli PM had become too great. The mass protests throughout the globe for the liberation of Palestine, and the persistent anti-government protests inside Israel, are the actual factors behind this influence.

It is due to this massive public campaign that a ceasefire has been signed, the hostages released, and the people of Gaza can experience protection from annihilation. After the ceasefire agreement has been signed, it is crucial to continue applying this influence. The international community has ignored to the atrocities in the strip for many years; it must not make the same mistake in the West Bank.