Apartheid as we know it rose to infamy in South Africa in 1948. In its decades of existence, the apartheid regime there passed a series of racial laws establishing racial segregation on almost every conceivable level, from separate benches in the public sphere, through segregation in schools, public transportation, the beaches and more, to the introduction of a different system of rights for Caucasians, African and "colored" people.
None of these characteristics exist in Israel or its rule over the Palestinians in Judea and Samaria. Indeed, because of how legal regime developed in the Palestinian territories there are differences between the norms that apply to Israelis and to the Palestinians. In some cases, some of these legal norms do infringe on the rights of Palestinians. Still, there is no connection between these legal differences and apartheid. In most cases, Judea and Samaria is subject to international law as well as military law, which adopts parts of Israeli law.
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No legal norm in Judea and Samaria practices any clear discrimination between Israelis and Palestinians based on their ethnicity and with forethought to discriminate. To the extent that there are legal differences, they do not discriminate in essence and in practice, and they arise only from the different legal status of the two populations.
True, from time to time, the rights of Palestinians living in these territories are infringed upon, but this violation is always proportionate, it stems from security needs and it is subject to oversight by the High Court of Justice.
The Trump administration's "deal of the century" suggests allowing Palestinians to establish a state in most of Judea and Samaria, in which they may not have full control over borders but they will have clear boundaries nonetheless, within which they will be given full rights to exercise sovereignty.
Despite this, the Palestinians and the critics of Trump's plan were quick to label it with the "scarlet letter" of apartheid.
They argue that the future Palestinian state envisioned in the Trump outline includes structured discrimination against the Palestinians because their territory will not be maximal and because the plan seeks to maintain Israel's security.
This time too, there is no bigger lie. After finally accepting responsibility for their fate and exercising their rights in the significant territory promised to them by the program, the Palestinians will have the full legal rights that a sovereign state can grant to its citizens, and it is hoped that their state constitution will also be given a central place in human rights.
Israel, however, will no longer rule them, and therefore it will not be able to apply any regime to them, certainly not apartheid.
