“Why are you obsessed with a two-state solution?” said Tzipi Hotovely, the Israeli ambassador to the UK during a Sky interview this week, snapping at the journalist for pressing her on the international consensus for ending Israel’s decades-long illegal occupation. “Why are you so obsessed with a formula that never worked?” the Israel envoy growled, insisting that there is “Absolutely no” chance for the two-state solution.
Over in the apartheid state, Israel’s Communications Minister, Shlomo Karhi, echoed Hotovely’s rejection of a peaceful settlement in favour of the maximalist position long espoused by Zionist leaders. “There will be no Palestinian State here,” Karhi said on X. “We will never allow another State to be established between the Jordan and the sea. We will never go back to Oslo,” he added, referring to the 1993 agreement.
Hotovely’s remarks triggered a swift response from the UK’s two major political parties. “The Labour Party is steadfast in its long-standing support for a two-state solution,” said David Lammy, the Shadow Foreign Secretary. He stressed that “a viable and independent Palestine alongside a safe and secure Israel, where all can enjoy security, dignity and statehood is the only credible basis for long-term peace”.
UK Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak, also publicly disagreed with the Israeli ambassador by telling Sky News that it is the long-standing position of the UK government that there should be an independent Palestinian State established alongside the existing one of Israel – giving both peoples their own territory.
The series of exchanges further highlights Israeli rejectionism and the desperation of world leaders to salvage, however improbably, the only solution which in their eyes can rescue Israel from its Catch-22 situation. The conundrum is framed as Israel’s choice between democracy and territory. The predicament arises because maintaining control over the Occupied Palestinian Territories compromises democratic values, creating a dichotomy: Jewish democracy or territory.
However, anyone remotely familiar with the pace of Israel’s annexation of Palestinian territory and the transfer of over 750,000 Israelis in Jewish-only settlements knows that, not only is a viable Palestinian State no longer a realistic possibility, but decades of impunity have meant that Israel has never been forced to make such a choice. The same impunity allows Israel to thrive economically and not face the consequences of being an Occupier practicing apartheid. To add insult to injury, the blame for the non-implementation of the two-state solution is placed on the Palestinians, despite Israel’s rejection of the establishment of a viable and sovereign Palestinian State.
Israelis have made no secret of the fact that control and domination of every inch of historic Palestine takes priority over considerations like democracy and even lesser considerations like the rights of Palestinians. Hotovely’s remarks about the two-state solution are the latest in a long list of explicit confessions about Israel’s long-held plan to never allow the creation of a viable Palestinian State. The Israeli ambassador has made no secret of her wish to block the creation of a viable Palestinian State.
Source : MEMO
