Peace Cannot Be Achieved Without a Palestinian State

By Ahmed Abdul Malik, Associate Professor at the International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM)

Former Israeli Justice Minister and architect of the Oslo Accords, Yossi Beilin, said in an interview with an Arab television channel that he told Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu: “The road to peace passes through Palestine, and peace cannot be achieved without a Palestinian state.”

Beilin added that Netanyahu’s rejection of the establishment of a Palestinian state has become an obstacle to political progress.

Indeed, the importance of peace in society lies in its role as a fundamental prerequisite for stability, prosperity, and economic and social development. Peace enables the creation of a sustainable civilization and protects human rights through a safe environment that supports cultural and intellectual growth.

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Peace also serves as the foundation for the peaceful resolution of conflicts, strengthening cooperation and tolerance among individuals and groups, and promoting justice and equality.

The peace process in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict refers to a series of intermittent negotiations amid ongoing violence since the conflict began.

Since the 1970s, various parallel efforts have been made to reach an agreement on the terms of peace, both within the broader Arab-Israeli and the Palestinian-Israeli contexts.

For decades, Israel’s occupation of Palestine has persisted, marked by armed conflict and repeated wars. Each time a war ends, calls emerge for a “lasting peace” between the Arab nations and Israel. Yet such peace has never materialized, nor are there tangible signs that it will.

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The main reason is that the aggressor has never been genuinely committed to peace and has ignored every call for it, regardless of its source. Since the issuance of UN Security Council Resolution 242 after the 1967 war, followed by the Rogers Plan in 1970 and Resolution 338 after the 1973 war, every initiative has included appeals for “lasting peace”, but none have yielded results.

After each war, the occupying power usually begins planning the next one. This pattern has long been understood by successive Israeli leaders and US administrations.

As long as the occupation forces feel militarily superior to the Arab side and continue to enjoy full US support coupled with their aggressive nature since the occupation of Palestine 75 years ago, they will have no desire to halt their aggression.

Can anyone realistically expect Israel to negotiate on equal terms with the Palestinian people after destroying Gaza, displacing its residents, and turning it into rubble?

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There is a strong belief that this entity (Israel) was built on war and conflict, and that genuine peace would ultimately lead to its collapse.

Therefore, each time calls arise for a so-called “lasting peace,” they either reflect naivety on the part of those making them or serve merely as political maneuvering, not as sincere efforts to replace war with peace.

The “Al-Aqsa Flood” or “Iron Swords” War also known as the Palestine–Israel war or Israel’s aggression against Gaza is an armed military conflict that began on October 7, 2023, between Palestinian resistance factions led by Hamas and Israeli forces in the Gaza Strip and Israel.

This battle has opened the eyes of the international community and stirred the conscience of free nations unwilling to see oppression disguised as justice or oppressors portrayed as victims  ultimately prompting growing global support for recognition of Palestinian statehood.

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At a time when Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu firmly rejects the establishment of a Palestinian state, more voices within Israel itself are calling for peace and a two-state solution.

Among them is Yossi Beilin, the former justice minister and Oslo Accords architect, who argued that ending the Gaza war through U.S. mediation highlights Israel’s weakening influence over decisions of war and peace.

Beilin warned that the absence of genuine Israeli initiatives for peace would make the Gaza agreement a critical test for the survival of the peace camp, and that continuing the current political approach would drag the region into another cycle of violence.

I believe that the only path to peace is through international pressure on Israel to implement UN resolutions recognizing Palestinian independence and freedom as essential steps toward regional security.

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Calls to dismantle Palestinian resistance organizations, particularly Hamas, are baseless and unjust, unworthy of anyone who claims fairness and will not bring about a solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Who are the real makers of war, and who are the true peacemakers? Clearly, the indigenous people of this land do not seek war. They dream of returning to their homes and living in security and peace, like other nations.

Ordinary Palestinians do not always carry weapons, while settlers possess deadly arms often used against those defending their land. For three-quarters of a century, war has been one-sided supported by Western nations and directed against the Palestinian people.

The Al-Aqsa Flood battle is a legitimate struggle aimed at liberating Palestine from Zionist occupation, and anything short of full independence will not resolve the conflict between Israel and Palestine.

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Indeed, peace cannot be achieved without a Palestinian state.[]

Mi’raj News Agency (MINA)

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