Palestinians’ pressure campaign turning the tide against Israel

AUN panel this month voted to ask the International Court of Justice for an advisory opinion on the 55-year-old occupation of Palestinian territories. Israel became hysterical as a result of the diplomatic success of the Palestinians. However, the Israelis are in denial. They simply need to understand that the status quo is no longer sustainable and the occupation can no longer be maintained as a “legal” act.

Israel has been occupying the land that was supposed to go to a Palestinian state since

1967. It has been able to sustain the occupation for so long due to two factors: Firstly, the fact that no Arab state was able to militarily defeat Israel, and, secondly, that, as a result of its intensive lobbying in the US, it had the world’s premier superpower on its side, vetoing any UN resolution against it. Basically, the combination of military supremacy and effective grassroots organization inside the US and the wider West has allowed Israel to maintain its illegal occupation.

The Israelis coupled their occupation with a campaign to demonize Palestinians and Arabs, representing Israel as an oasis of democracy and human rights in a sea of barbarism. They positioned themselves as a nascent state that merely seeks acceptance and peaceful living in a rough neighborhood, in which everyone surrounding it wants its demise.

The occupation was promoted as a security necessity and the settlements as a right of Jews to be in their holy land. However, this perception is starting to change due to several factors, one of them being Israel’s lack of control of information due to social media. Now, all the abuses can be easily documented on a smartphone and put on various platforms. Hence, it is getting more and more difficult to hide the abuses of occupation.

Also, the entire narrative that Israel’s

Arab neighbors vie for its destruction is no longer valid. Some Arab states have formally normalized ties with Israel. Also, the Israeli leadership has been more and more vocal in its opposition to a Palestinian state. Former Prime Minister Naftali Bennett explicitly said he would not allow a Palestinian state under his watch. Therefore, the international community is becoming disillusioned with Israel’s supposed innocence.

On the Palestinian side, changes are happening. The Arab diaspora in the West that is sympathetic to Palestine is becoming more active, more vocal and more visible. Hence, they are able to put forward a counternarrative to the Israeli narrative and this trend will likely increase.

While the Abraham Accords emboldened Israel, they also galvanized the Palestinians. The Palestinians are now aware that they can no longer rely on Arabs alone to support their cause. This was a wake-up call for the Palestinians. They know they cannot negotiate with the Israelis unless they have some leverage. This is why the Palestinians are using the legal path to put pressure on Israel. Though the investigation by the International Court of Justice is unlikely to result in any punitive action against Israel — and the US will always be there to veto any resolution that is put on the table — this will be just one episode in a sustained pressure campaign on Israel.

The timing is also to the Palestinians’ advantage. The UN decolonization committee’s resolution came at a time when Israel is about to get its most right-wing government ever. The moderates in Israel showed in the last election that they are disorganized and lack courage. Outgoing Prime Minister Yair Lapid, who is a moderate and is an advocate of the two-state solution, did not even meet with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, let alone make him a decent offer to end the occupation and recognize a sovereign Palestinian state.

The right in Israel is becoming more extreme, catering to the settlers’ whims and ideology more than the long-term interests of the country. Netanyahu cannot do without these extremist factions. If they break off from his coalition, he will be out of power and subject to the corruption court case that might land him in jail. Hence, it is unlikely that he will be more moderate in his behavior in the Occupied Territories.

The UN report is likely to expose Israel’s abuses. No matter how much Tel Aviv tries to portray its occupation as benign, occupation can never be benign. While the Israelis are hysterical and the country’s representative to the UN accused the Palestinians of using the International Court of Justice “as a weapon of mass destruction in their … war of Israel demonization,” the Palestinians gave a measured response and are going ahead with their well-planned diplomatic campaign to end the occupation and establish their own state.