As Global Attention Stays on Gaza, Israel's Settlers in the Occupied Territories Persist Operating With Impunity

Last week, during a joint address by US President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the Israeli parliament, fellow parliamentarian Ayman Odeh and I raised a sign urging the acknowledgment of Palestine. We were violently removed from the legislative assembly, exposing the fragile condition of what's frequently described as the "sole democratic state in the region". How can officials speak about regional peace while declining to acknowledge a people denied of fundamental freedoms and rights under long-standing occupation?

The Reality in the West Bank

In no place is the hypocrisy more evident than in the controlled West Bank. There, talk of peace seem distant and weak, while the terrifying echoes of settler violence and intimidation persist strongly. Over 30 occurrences of settler aggression against Palestinians have been recorded since the unveiling of the Trump administration's 20-point plan in September's end, including attacks, theft of agricultural produce, and torching of cars and belongings.

Systematic Aggression During Harvest Season

The increase in violence by colonists is deliberate. This time marks the beginning of agricultural harvesting. More than a crucial economic event, it represents an significant communal and cultural moment that shows endurance under military rule. Exactly for these reasons, annually settlers target Palestinians throughout this crucial period. During the 2024 harvest period, rights groups documented 113 separate cases of violence, intimidation, harvest-thwarting, or damage to olive groves and produce involving Israeli civilians and military personnel, which occurred on territories belonging to 51 Palestinian communities, towns, and communities.

Israeli military seemed to have played a larger part in obstructing the olive harvest

The human rights group also discovered that "Israeli security forces seemed to have played a larger part in obstructing the harvesting season". In approximately 70% of cases where entry to farmland was forcibly blocked, soldiers, border police officers, and settler security officials were physically on site. They either directly stopped Palestinians from reaching and harvesting their own lands, or failed to prevent settlers who harassed or attacked them.

Political Support for Settler Activities

This comes as no shock, as the leader of the colonists' political movement, Bezalel Smotrich, was appointed as an additional minister in the Defense Ministry in charge of the territorial coordination unit. In one village, for example, a particular COGAT unit uprooted personally-owned olive trees of Palestinians, citing lack of permits, but overlooked infractions by an unauthorized nearby settler outpost. Last week, the Jerusalem district court decided to stop all building work in the encampment, which was built on lands seized by Israel and illegally transferred to colonists.

Annexation Ambitions and Global Reaction

In the controlled West Bank, settler terrorism is nothing but a tool used by the administration to pursue de-facto incorporation. Recently, Smotrich led a march of many of colonists in support of annexation the West Bank. He was quoted as stating, "We are continuing to establish presence with our feet of the territory with numerous settlers, many champions, and hundreds of thousands of colonists who reside in this part of the land ... we need to normalise it and establish it permanently."

The settlers and their backers in the parliament are explicit about their intentions and intentions. Why, then, do political leaders in the west hesitate from substantial penalties and diplomatic measures? Smotrich was penalized by the UK in the summer, but the effect of the penalty has been minimal. He may not be permitted to travel to the United Kingdom and tour the West End, but he still maintains the governmental authority to seize territories in the West Bank. Remarkably in the declaration of penalties, the British government emphasized they apply "in his personal capacity" solely.

Global Acknowledgment and Reality

If the UK government acknowledges the truth of settler violence and its grave consequences on Palestinian life, why does it still permit settlement produce to be marketed in markets and shops in Britain? If the British leader is genuine about recognition of Palestine as a sovereign entity, how come he permit the Israeli administration to violate its sovereignty with such aggressive methods? Or was the acknowledgment an empty tactic to silence dissenting voices in the UK, a hollow gesture only to be implemented in the relabeling of some maps?

Pathway to Genuine Resolution

A fair peace must honor the fundamental entitlements of the Palestinian people for self-recognition, sovereignty, and liberty from occupation and siege. Only when each person's dignity between the river and sea is respected can we genuinely declare peace has been attained.

True resolution demands an sovereign Palestinian state next to Israel: this is the sole solution that enjoises agreement among the international community, the Palestinian national movement, and the Israeli peace camp.

The former US president may have inflicted influence on the Israeli leader to halt the violence, but he likely only did so because the strain of his relationship with the pariah regime of Netanyahu had become too great. The large demonstrations across the world for the liberation of Palestine, and the persistent opposition protests inside Israel, are the real forces behind this pressure.

It is thanks to this massive civil movement that a truce has been agreed, the captives released, and the residents of Gaza can enjoy protection from annihilation. After the ceasefire agreement has been finalized, it is crucial to continue applying this influence. The international community has turned a blind eye to the violence in Gaza for too long; it must not repeat the same mistake in the West Bank.