At the United Nations General Assembly, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas reiterated that unless Israel stops its aggressive and repressive policies against Palestinian people, ends its annexation by stealth of Palestinian lands through the construction of colonies, and pursues policies that would help formulate a two-state solution, there is little if any prospect of meaningful progress for peace in the Middle East.
The election of United States President Donald Trump last November provided Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu with an ally who looks upon the Palestinian question with the same myopic lens, and while the new White House administration has indicated that it is willing to find a lasting solution, it appears to be solely based on the thinking and political aspirations of the Tel Aviv government. That is the same occupation government that believes it is justified in the murders of Palestinian protesters in the streets, the illegal and unjust detention of thousands of Palestinian prisoners on rolling administrative detention orders, and has used any and every tactic to keep the faithful from Al Haram Al Sharif. It is a government that has wilfully defied the overwhelming majority of nations in the UN General Assembly and continues to frustrate and oppose every reasonable measure made for or in favour of the Palestinian people and their legitimate cause.
Abbas is right in that the only way forward for Palestinians is through an internationally brokered two-state solution that guarantees his people land, legitimacy and the right of return. The illegal occupation of Jerusalem must end and Israeli colonies must be ripped down. Only then can there be lasting peace.
