The West's Divided Palestine Policy
Countries such as the USA, the UK and Germany openly supported Israel's aggression by asserting its right to self-defence, while countries such as Spain and Portugal sided with Palestine.
In order to understand the social and political events in history and today, generalisations, using certain concepts and relying on theories offer convenience in terms of explaining the issues. Such an approach is inevitable in order to produce scientific knowledge, whether inductive or deductive. However, if the concepts and theories used are part of an ideological and political discourse rather than a scientific endeavour, the result is nothing more than a demagogic claim rather than facts. The Western world's approach to Palestine is also one of the issues where generalisations are often made.
The Middle East, which has been the cradle of many civilisations in history, home to the holiest places of the three Abrahamic religions, and at the crossroads of trade routes, entered the twentieth century as one of the regions in the focus of great powers' attention with the introduction of oil into the equation with the industrial revolution. Even before the end of the First World War, the region was divided by Britain and France, and at the end of the war, artificial borders emerged, which are being reshaped today. The problem in Palestine emerged as a result of the overlap between the Jews' search for a homeland for themselves and the strategic interests of the imperialist powers, first changing the demographic structure of the region and then its political structure.
The conflicts between the Arab and Jewish communities that took place before Britain left the region by ending its mandate in 1948 turned into a regional war involving neighbouring Arab states after the establishment of the State of Israel. After 1948, the gap left by Britain, which played a very important role in the establishment of the State of Israel by declaring the Balfour Declaration, was filled by the USA. In the following period, the US has been the most important supporter of Israel both due to its interests in the region and the influence of the Jewish lobby in the country.
The attack of Hamas against Israel on 07 October 2023 and the military operation launched by Israel in Gaza brought Palestine back to the agenda of the world public opinion. Israel's attacks, which caused widespread destruction and many civilian deaths, led to widespread protests in many countries. While Israel openly violated the rules of the international law of war in front of the eyes of the whole world, the institutions in charge of maintaining international security and peace failed to find a solution. This state of insolvency and helplessness has fuelled debates about the current international system and led to the emergence of anger and resentment against Western countries and institutions. In our country, too, the sense of religious solidarity and the tendency to be on the side of the oppressed have led to the formation of a negative public opinion against Israel and Western states. Although it is seen as a normal attitude to hold the whole West responsible for conflicts, wars, etc. in which Muslims are a party, the reality is often different.
Similarly, the attitude of Western countries towards Israel's attacks on Gaza varies. Apart from the widespread protests in these countries and the demonstrations in US universities, the political positions taken by the states are not the same. For example, countries such as the USA, the UK and Germany openly supported Israel's aggression by asserting its right to self-defence, while countries such as Spain and Portugal sided with Palestine. In May-June 2024, Spain, Norway, Ireland, Slovenia and Ireland declared their recognition of Palestine, thus demonstrating their stance against Israel . (1)
In the United Nations General Assembly vote on 10 May 2024, 21 of the 143 countries that voted in favour of Palestine's qualification for full UN membership status were European countries. (2) France, a permanent member of the UN Security Council (UNSC), is known to support Palestine's UN membership. (3)
In the past, the UNSC has been able to adopt resolutions declaring Israel's occupation of the Palestinian territories illegal (4 ) and recommending a two-state solution. (5) After the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruling in July, 19 of the 124 members who voted in favour of the resolution calling for an end to Israel's occupation of the Palestinian territories within one year are European countries . (6)
There is a case against Israel at the ICJ for violating the UN conventions on genocide against Palestinians in Gaza as a result of an application by South Africa. Also as a result of South Africa's application, the International Criminal Court (ICM) issued an arrest warrant against Netanyahu and Defence Minister Yoav Gallant on 21 November 2024. According to this decision, Netanyahu and Gallant can be arrested if they travel to 124 member states that have accepted ICM decisions.
It cannot be said that the reaction of the international community to Israel is sufficient. On the contrary, the support of politically, militarily and economically powerful Western countries such as the USA, the UK and Germany makes Israel more reckless. However, many Western states oppose Israel's policies and many institutions, organisations and non-governmental organisations, especially the EU, support the Palestinians. The aggression in Gaza has further undermined Israel's credibility in the eyes of Western states and increased sympathy for Palestine. This attitude, which differs from the leading states of the West, does not seem to have much effect on Israel.
On the other hand, it should be noted that the policies of the current far-right government of Israel are not supported by almost half of the Israeli public. Netanyahu's policy of aggression in order to stay in power due to the ongoing lawsuits against him and the trauma caused by 07 October is not sustainable. Despite Trump coming to power in the US, an increasingly isolated Israel will be forced to hear the voice of humanity in Palestine. Who knows, perhaps the process that started in another European country, as in Madrid or Oslo in the past, will this time result in a lasting peace.
Footnote
(1) 16 of the 149 countries that have recognised Palestine so far are Western countries located in the European continent. According to the data on the Palestinian Ministry of Foreign Affairs website, these 16 countries and the years of their recognition are as follows: Serbia (1988), Albania (1988), Czechia (1988), Slovakia (1988), Hungary (1988), Romania (1988), Bulgaria (1988), Poland (1988), Bosnia and Herzegovina (1992), Montenegro (2006), Iceland (2011), Sweden (2014), Norway (2024), Ireland (2024), Spain (2024), Slovenia (2024).
(2) ‘Admission of new Members to the United Nations: resolution / adopted by the General Assembly’, 10 May 2024, https://digitallibrary.un.org/record/4046991?ln=en
The vote was 143 for and 9 against, with 25 countries absent. As accession to the UN requires UN Security Council approval, the State of Palestine is not yet a full member, but has been a non-member observer since 2012.
(3) Farnaz Fassihi, ‘U.N. General Assembly Adopts Resolution in Support of Palestinian Statehood’, The New York Times, 10 May 2024, https://www.nytimes.com/2024/05/10/world/middleeast/un-resolution-palestinian.html
(4) UNSC Resolution 242, 22 November 1967.
(5) UNSC Resolution 1397, 12 March 2002.
(6) ‘Advisory opinion of the International Court of Justice on the legal consequences arising from Israel's policies and practices in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, and from the illegality of Israel's continued presence in the Occupied Palestinian Territory : resolution / adopted by the General Assembly’, 18 September 2024, https://digitallibrary.un.org/record/4061432?ln=en
In the voting, 124 voted for and 14 against, 25 countries did not participate in the voting and 12 countries did not vote.
Anushka Patil, ‘U.N. Body Demands Israel End Its “Unlawful Presence in the Occupied Palestinian Territory”’, The New York Times, 18 September 2024,
https://www.nytimes.com/2024/09/18/world/middleeast/un-israel-occupation-palestinian.html
