As long as the Arab world remains firm and clear that the US must stop blocking the two-state solution, an independent and sovereign state of Palestine, a member of the UN, will likely emerge very soon.
Israel’s war against Gaza became the Palestine Liberation War. The brutality of the war and blatant disregard for international law shook global politics to its core. But with Arab unity, Palestine will achieve its liberation, paving the way for peace and security in the Middle East through a two-state solution.
Although the United States government recognizes the need for a two-state solution, it blocks it in practice, with the only veto last month against Palestine’s membership of the United Nations. Israel counts on the US to continue to prevent the emergence of a truly sovereign State of Palestine. However, even this obstacle can be overcome.
The Arab nations, with impressive unity, are bypassing US resistance. Following an Arab League meeting in Bahrain in mid-May, the Arab world is working towards a global conference to implement the two-state solution.
The Bahrain Declaration calls for “an international conference under the auspices of the United Nations to resolve the Palestinian question on the basis of a two-state solution, ending the Israeli occupation of all occupied Arab territories, incorporating an independent, sovereign and viable, in accordance with resolutions of international legitimacy, to live in peace and security alongside Israel, as a way of achieving a just and comprehensive peace.”
Arab unity in the two-state solution has been strengthening for more than two decades. The breakthrough came in 2002 with the Arab Peace Initiative although Israel has rejected the Arab peace offer of the two-state solution and the US has repeatedly supported Israel in its rejectionist policies. After the outbreak of the Gaza War in October, Arab and Islamic leaders reiterated the peace proposal in a meeting in Riyadh in November.
Since then, Arab-backed diplomacy for a two-state solution has been accelerating, even as Israel’s war against Gaza continues unabated on the ground. After numerous delays and vetoes by the US, the UN Security Council finally supported a immediate ceasefire on March 25, although Israel blatantly ignored the resolution. On April 18th, United Nations Security Council voted overwhelmingly in favor of Palestine joining the UN, with only the US voting against and two countries (the UK and Switzerland) abstaining. On May 10th, the UN General Assembly overwhelmingly supported Palestine’s bid for UN membership in a vote of 143-9. On May 22, Norway, Spain and Ireland announced plans to recognize a Palestinian state, and the Irish prime minister said he was confident that “more countries will follow.”
Not only does the diplomatic process in the US and the Arab League isolate the US, but the force of international law weighs relentlessly. South Africa’s case at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) accusing Israel of genocide led to a crucial ICJ interim judgment on January 26, which stated that it is plausible that Israel is violating the 1948 Genocide Convention, and a emergency situation ordered on Friday that Israel immediately halt its operations in Rafah. This week, the International Criminal Court prosecutor also recommended arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, along with three Hamas leaders.
A global conference would put an end to the US. The US is more likely to change its own position. The US’s isolation in the world is intolerable for its security and national interests. The USA needs good relations with the Arab world, with its almost 500 million inhabitants, its strategic location, its economic role and its centrality in the global energy system. The US also needs good relations with the wider Islamic world and its nearly two billion Muslims.
The Israel lobby in the US is working hard to halt moves towards a two-state solution. In America’s corrupt politics, money talks. The Israeli lobby promises campaign financing. However, lobbying has its limits. American public opinion is turning against Israel’s apartheid regime and its shocking violence in Gaza.
O major US media They are now showing the US public that, long before last October, Israel’s judicial system had already become an instrument of oppression, expropriation and systematic murder against Palestinians. Social media broadcasts the daily destruction in Gaza, with Israeli soldiers rejoicing as they destroy a university, hospital or apartment building.
The US is trying one last gambit, the old divide and conquer trick – trying to break Arab unity over Palestine by making a parallel deal with Saudi Arabia. The US promises nuclear technology, advanced fighter jets and a defense pact if the Saudis immediately normalize relations with Israel, leaving the sovereignty of a Palestinian state for yet another vague peace process.
The US gamble will almost certainly fail, as Arab countries recognize the unprecedented power of Arab unity to establish peace in their region. Arab countries are not only on the side of justice for the Palestinian people, but also on the side of overwhelming world opinion. As long as the Arab world remains firm and clear that the US must stop blocking the two-state solution, an independent and sovereign state of Palestine, a member of the UN, will likely emerge very soon, in accordance with the will of the region and the world community. .
The views expressed in this article are those of the authors themselves and do not necessarily reflect the editorial position of Al Jazeera.
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