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The West's Recognition of a Palestinian State Rewards Hamas for Terror

(Jerusalem Post) William C. Daroff - In recent weeks, the governments of France, Australia, Canada and the UK announced that they planned to recognize a Palestinian state at the UN General Assembly this month. These gestures are presented as bold, moral stands for peace. In truth, they are nothing of the kind. They are a dangerous misstep that rewards terrorism, emboldens antisemitism, and makes genuine peace less likely. Since Oct. 7, when Hamas launched the deadliest attack on Jews since the founding of the State of Israel, it rejected one ceasefire proposal after another that had been crafted by the U.S., Egypt, and Qatar. It refused to release hostages. It offered no vision of coexistence, only the destruction of Israel, as spelled out in its charter. The effect is obvious. Hamas learns that obstruction pays: Refuse compromise, hold on to hostages, rain rockets on civilians, and eventually world powers will cave. This is not diplomacy. It is appeasement. Even worse, many leaders shift the blame from Hamas to Israel. As though the obstacle to peace lies not in Hamas's charter of annihilation, not in the rockets it still fires at Israeli towns, not in the hostages it still hides in tunnels, but in Israel itself. The absurdity is staggering. The only democracy in the Middle East stands condemned, while the terror group that set off this war receives a diplomatic reward. Recognition handed out without negotiation devalues the very concept of a two-state solution. It turns statehood from the culmination of compromise into a consolation prize for intransigence. It strips Palestinians of the incentive to build institutions and leaders capable of governing responsibly. It denies Israelis the basic assurance that their security will not be bargained away for political convenience abroad. From Camp David to Oslo to the Gaza disengagement, Israeli leaders staked their credibility on compromise. Each time, Palestinians answered with rejection and violence. The burden now rests squarely on Palestinian leaders to reject terror and embrace coexistence. The writer is CEO of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations (COP), the recognized central coordinating body representing 50 Jewish organizations on issues of national and international concern.
2025-09-14 00:00:00
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