The past week has seen the formal recognition of a Palestinian state by several prominent Western nations. The United Kingdom, France, Canada, Australia, Portugal, and Belgium have all taken a stand to try to stop the decay of the two-state solution. They hope to give new momentum to the increasingly ridiculed idea that cycles of violence are breakable and two peoples who have shared the same land for centuries can do so once again.
The recognition of Palestine by powerful Western nations may be a symbolic gesture, but we should not underestimate the power of symbolism.
The decisions are not the result of a two-year struggle for recognition, but rather a mission that has spanned more than a century. They are commitments to not letting the Palestinians be erased from either history or the future.
While the recognitions are far from meaningless, they are insufficient without genuine pressure on the Israeli government to end the genocide in Gaza and the multiple crimes against international law committed on the West Bank. They are an important part of what must be a two-pronged approach of pressure and support. This week has contained loud shows of support, but we are still waiting to see any real pressure.
It would be foolish to end the war without also working on a long-term solution rooted in a free Palestinian state and a safe Israeli one. On the other hand, it is also naïve to only plan for the long term without addressing the pressing catastrophes and famines that are killing scores of innocent civilians daily.
While the responses from the United States and Israel to the mass recognition of Palestine are not surprising, they are certainly jarring. The fact that several Israeli ministers are now openly calling for a retaliatory annexation of the occupied West Bank shows just how much confidence they have in the Israeli moral position. Israel’s far-right Finance Minister, Bezalel Smotrich, dismissed the recognition as trivial, adding that “the British mandate (over Palestine) has ended.”
Furthermore, Benjamin Netanyahu’s promise that “there will be no Palestinian state west of the Jordan River” is essentially an Israeli rewording of the Palestinian “from the river to the sea.” If we apply their own harsh logic to that statement, Netanyahu is calling for the extermination of Palestinians.
The common critique voiced by, among others, President Trump, that the recognition of Palestine is a prize to Hamas and will embolden the group, is the argument that, at first glance, holds some water. Antonio Guterres, the current Secretary-General of the UN, dismissed such arguments, calling statehood for the Palestinians “a right, not a reward.” The same critique could also be levied at almost any effort to support the Palestinians, making it futile and unhelpful.
As long as Netanyahu has Donald Trump on board, he seems ready to take on the rest of the world. It is wrong to assume, however, that President Trump will never jump ship. A Reuters poll from August has shown that nearly 60 per cent of Americans believe that Palestine should be recognised by all UN members. The alliance that has seen the United States back Israel for decades is shakier than ever. If support for Israel is no longer a vote-winner, there is no telling what Trump will do.
Finally, there is too little reporting about what the recognitions that we have seen this week mean for Palestinians. Many welcome the news wholeheartedly as they feel that Palestine’s position on the international stage is stronger now than it was a month ago.
There is also a feeling of vindication among many in Gaza and the West Bank. It is of great importance that many of the same nations that were champions of the Zionist project at the inception are now recognising the rights of the Arabs they have subjugated. New embassies and modes of diplomacy will also allow their voices to be heard on the official level, not just as distressed civilians. Most Palestinians are not satisfied, however, and now wait for further boycotts and political pressure to force Israel’s hand.
Netanyahu has promised to deliver Israel’s response to the recognition after he returns from the United States. I fear the response will be directed at the recipients of the recognition rather than the recognisers themselves. More death and carnage is sure to follow. But while the realisation of a peaceful, free, and autonomous Palestine seems increasingly distant, the dream is sure to live on.
“Palestine flags” by theglobalpanorama is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0.