Two weeks ago, Robert Malley and Hussein Agha published an op-ed in the UK's Guardian arguing that the top priority should be ending the war. They warned that Britain and France's recognition of a Palestinian state would actually undermine efforts to end the war.
"This step is completely detached from reality and contradicts its own stated goals," they wrote. "It will do nothing to bring the sides closer to a two state solution." Malley and Agha are known for their pro Palestinian positions, and are certainly not political conservatives.
Despite such warnings, on Monday Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese announced his government would recognize a Palestinian state in a UN vote. Israeli officials said the move will only push peace further out of reach and amounts to giving a gift to terrorism. In plainer terms: a terrorist organization that has effectively become an army, attacking Israel with a level of barbarism unseen since the Holocaust, is now being rewarded.
For nearly two years, the Israel Defense Forces have been working to defeat and dismantle Hamas and other terrorist organisations in the Gaza Strip. But distressing images, including faked photos from Hamas propaganda campaigns, have convinced some leaders in the so called enlightened world to side with the terrorist organization.
Israel views the recognition moves not merely as betrayal but as active support by Western left wing governments for Hamas and its massacre of October 7. Germany's Chancellor Friedrich Merz added to the outrage by imposing an arms embargo on Israel, in an act that strengthens terrorism.
These Western governments, aided by political unrest inside Israel, have lowered Hamas' motivation to agree to a ceasefire or a hostage-release deal. Israel, now cornered diplomatically, sees no choice but to press on militarily to defeat Hamas, warning that otherwise the terrorists will exploit any imposed ceasefire without freeing hostages, at least until Israel makes concessions tantamount to surrender.
Jerusalem is being urged to couple its military campaign in Gaza with unilateral steps such as extending sovereignty over Area C of the West Bank and the Jordan Valley.
Recognition of a Palestinian state is also seen in Israel as a threat not only to the country but to Jewish communities in those Western nations, amid a spike in antisemitic violence. In Australia, the government and authorities have repeatedly taken steps signaling to radical Muslims and far-left activists that targeting Jews is tolerated, as happened when former justice minister Ayelet Shaked was barred from entering the country.
These governments are ignoring both reality, and international law.
An acquaintance in Gaza told a parliament member by phone that residents there are searching desperately for food and may soon have nothing to eat. Yet that same MP believes the proper response to this humanitarian crisis is recognition of a Palestinian state.
The fact remains that the Palestinians have no functioning governing or state infrastructure worthy of recognition. When they have been granted territory and the opportunity to govern, the entity created has descended into violent barbarism. Hamas' brutal aggression is directed not only at Israel but also at the civilians of Gaza, a level of exploitation of one's own population that experts say has no precedent in history.
