October 9, 2015

Photo by Asim Bharwani under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0

The uptick in violence in the Holy Land has caused concerns that a third intifada could be imminent.  Clashes have reignited at Al-Aqsa as Israeli police stormed the compound. Within a week, four Israelis have been stabbed to death and two Palestinians shot and killed. Israel restricted access to the mosque, only reopening it this week.

None of this is new. The same words could be copied and pasted for multiple conflicts that have occurred over the 4-decade occupation of Palestinians. What is new, however, is the turning of the tide in support of the rights to freedom of self-determination, movement, and dignity that Palestinian men and women deserve.

We have seen this slow, but substantial, shift over the past few years. In 2012, the UN recognized Palestine as an non-member observer state. The Vatican recognized the state of Palestine this year. And that trend continues- in September, St. Lucia became the 137th country to recognize Palestine. Further, UN raised Palestine’s flag at the UN General Assembly this year.

The world is supporting freedom and self-determination for an occupied people. One by one, nations and international bodies see that the Palestinian people merely ask for the same thing most others have- sovereignty, a chance to build an economy free from obstruction, and a future. This begs the question- why is the United States still lagging behind?

The U.S. continues to be stuck in supporting the aggressor of a decades-long conflict which sees more and more land usurped, more rights be violated, and more people being killed. While the rest of the world has recognized that the situation is unsustainable, the U.S. has continued with the same policy of calling for negotiations, believing that this time, just maybe, they may work.

The U.S.’s anachronistic policy only serves to hurt its interests regionally and with the international community. Occupation has never been sustainable. The band-aids that have been used to preserve the status quo are starting to break. In fact, President Mahmoud Abbas declared his intention to no longer abide by the Oslo Accords because Israel has not committed to abide by the agreements.

The arc of the universe bends towards justice. The question is whether we want to be a part of that. It’s time the U.S. join our neighbors in the international community and support freedom and self-determination for all.