France and Saudi Arabia want to use this year’s gathering of world leaders United Nations General Assembly and An increasingly terrifying war in the Gaza Strip It injects new urgency into the quest for solutions to the Israeli-Palestinian conflicts.
These efforts include a new roadmap for the ultimate Palestinian state in Israel’s territory seized in the 1967 Middle East War. By some Western countries To participate in the majority of the world in recognizing such a state before it is established.
UK, Canada, Australia Officially recognized the Palestinian state Sunday, participate Almost 150 countries That’s already done so, and France is expected to follow suit at this week’s general meeting.
But efforts to drive solutions for the two states have started with fierce opposition from the US and Israel, and faced major obstacles. The US has Blocked Palestinian officials Even attending the general meeting. And Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is opposed to the Palestinian state, is threatening to take unilateral actions accordingly – perhaps including Annexation of parts of the West Bank.
It would put the Palestinians’ dream of independence even further out of reach.
Leads have never been dimmed
The creation of a Palestinian state in East Jerusalem, the West Bank and Gaza has long been seen internationally as the only way to resolve conflicts. Over a century Before Hamas’ October 7, 2023, the attack caused an ongoing war in Gaza.
Supporters say this will allow Israel to exist as a democracy with a Jewish majority. The alternative, they say, is the current situation where Jewish Israelis have full rights and Palestinians live under Israeli rule to varying degrees. Major rights groups say apartheid has a price.
“Israel must understand that it is absolutely unbearable to conquer the Palestinian people with unrighteous conquests,” UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said last week. “Without a two-state solution, there is no peace in the Middle East.”
The peace negotiations launched in the early 1990s were repeatedly shaken up amid violence Expanding Israeli settlements It aims to prevent the Palestinian state. Since Netanyahu took office in 2009, no substantial negotiations have been underway.
Israel annexed East Jerusalem, viewing it as part of its capital, and has long encouraged the growth of Jewish settlements. Indoor and out A Palestine neighborhood.
The occupied West Bank is home to over 500,000 settlers, with Israeli citizenship and around 3 million Palestinians. People who live under Israeli military controlPalestinian authorities are exerting limited autonomy in scattered enclaves.
In Gaza, Israeli retaliatory attacks killed tens of thousands of Palestinians and expelled about 90% of its 2 million population. Much of the territory was uninhabited and I pushed some areas into starvation. New offensive threats Empty and flatten the largest city in Palestine.
The Netanyahu government and most of the Israeli political class were opposed to the Palestinian state even before the war. The Trump administration has not expressed interest in reviving peace talks and instead calls for much of Gaza’s population to be relocated to other countries. Israel’s enthusiastic adoption plan Even if critics say it, it would amount to cleansing the nation.
France and Saudi Arabia plans
Perhaps hoping this would be a predawn moment, France and Saudi Arabia have gone through a phased plan to end the conflict by establishing an unarmed state where Palestinian authority was ruled with international support.
The plan calls for an immediate end to the war in Gaza, the return of all hostages, and the complete withdrawal of Israel. Hamas entrusted his power to a politically independent committee under the auspices of Palestinian authority, which he had already agreed to – and placed weapons that it did not have.
The international community will help Palestinian authorities rebuild Gaza and govern the territory, perhaps with the help of foreign peacekeepers. Regional peace and integration that could include the normalization of Saudi Arabia in relations with Israel will continue.
A 193 world group approved a non-binding resolution that supports what is called “New York Declaration” Early this month.
Opposition between America and Israel
The US and Israel are saying that the international push of the Palestinian state will reward Hamas, making it difficult to reach a deal to stop the war and return the remaining hostages.
When Israel was executed, the Gaza ceasefire talks broke again Strike on September 9 targeting Hamas negotiators in Qatarone of the major mediators. The US had I left the discussion In July, they criticized Hamas and Israel. One-sided end of previous ceasefire In March.
Israel also says that by creating a Palestinian state, Hamas can carry out a further October 7-style attack across the board. Hamas Leader Sometimes shown They would accept the 1967 Rhine state, but the group is officially committed to the destruction of Israel.
Netanyahu portrays the international perception of the Palestinian state as an attack on Israel. In a meeting with Secretary of State Marco Rubio last week, Netanyahu said, “If unilateral actions are made against us, it is clear that we simply invite unilateral actions on our part.”
Netanyahu and his far-right coalition partner I’ve wanted to annex it for a long time Most of the West Bank makes it virtually impossible to establish a viable Palestinian state.
The US has no public stance on the issue, but in an interview with Fox News, Rubio linked “this conversation about annexation” to the issue of state perception.
United Arab Emirates The annexation is called “red line.” Without saying how it will affect Abraham’s 2020 agreement, which normalized relations with Israel.
There are other obstacles too
The French and Saudi Arabia plan avoids the most divisive issues of conflict: the final boundaries, the fate of the village, Palestinian refugees return From past wars, security arrangements, Jerusalem’s status, and Israel’s perception as a Jewish state.
It also relies heavily on Palestinian authority. It is being despised by many Palestinians Who sees them as corrupt and dictatorial? Israel denies Palestinian inciting powers, saying they are not fully committed to peace Despite recent reforms.
The plan calls for Palestinian elections to take place within a year, but President Mahmoudabus delayed his previous votes. When his party seemed to losedenounces Israel’s restrictions. Hamas, who won his last national election in 2006, will abandon his weapons and be excluded unless he recognizes Israel.
All of this means that the plan is likely to end up on the mound of past Middle Eastern agreements, parameters and roadmap, and Israel Land from the Jordan River to the Mediterraneanruled millions of Palestinians who have been denied basic rights.
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