Article published in The Daily Telegraph, 30 August 2024. © Richard Kemp
The confrontations in the West Bank starkly illustrate the challenges Israel faces today on the world stage. Even before October 7 the level of violence there was on the rise. Since Hamas’s murderous invasion along the Gaza border, terrorist aggression in the West Bank has increased further. Much of this is down to Hamas as well as Fatah terrorists who are being pressed forward by Iranian funds and arms as well as encouragement by the Palestinian Authority. Until now, the IDF carried out limited raids to contain it. A couple of days ago it launched a division-sized operation.
The BBC, which has displayed repeated hostility towards Israel, has been questioning whether it was necessary for Jerusalem to defend itself against West Bank terrorism, rather than first questioning why they had to do so. Predictably the UN Secretary-General, Antonio Guterres, has called for an ‘immediate cessation’ of Israeli operations. In a tweet he recited the worn-out solecism so beloved of international diplomats who have no answers: ‘Only an end to the occupation and a return to a meaningful political process that will establish a two-state solution will bring an end to the violence.’
Guterres is living in an alternate universe. After Israel withdrew its forces and uprooted all its citizens from Gaza in 2005, the strip was turned into an engine of war. Hamas’s fortress could be contained without full-scale military operations until October 7, but that doesn’t apply to the West Bank with its proximity to major Israeli population centres as well as its long border with Jordan. A terrorist army left unchecked would not only threaten Israel but Jordan as well.
Already Iran has been trying to destabilise Amman and develop a base of attack against Israel from the country. So no, Mr Guterres, the utopian vision of a two-state solution, which polls show the majority of Palestinian Arabs don’t want in any case, is not possible, especially not now.
We see this same picture with Gaza, Lebanon and Iran. Israel has been attacked on all fronts and has responded in each case, both defensively and offensively, with tactical brilliance. Yet it has also been condemned repeatedly for doing so, in the media, in international bodies and in Western capitals. The traditional response among political leaders and diplomats always begins with ‘Israel has the right to defend itself but …’ before the predictable calls for restraint and ceasefires, topped off by the obligatory mumblings about a ‘two-state solution’.
The sort of restraint demanded has never been asked of any other country under attack. An example of the double standards applied to Israel can be seen in two tweets by David Lammy a few days ago. In response to attacks by Russia on Ukraine, he said: ‘The UK utterly condemns Russia’s cowardly missile and drone attacks on civilian infrastructure across Ukraine today. These assaults are in flagrant violation of international law and those responsible must be brought to justice.’ The day before, responding to Hezbollah missile and drone attacks on Israel he wrote: ‘Further escalation in the Middle East must be avoided at all costs. In my call with [an] Israeli Minister … I reiterated the UK’s support for Israel’s security, the importance of restraint, the need for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza and the release of all hostages.’ Happy to condemn Russia, he couldn’t even bring himself to name Iran’s terrorist proxy which had attacked Israel, being far more eager to urge restraint on Jerusalem.
Israel is winning its multi-front war but it is far from clear that its so-called allies in the West want it to do so. Gaza is now relatively stable, despite the need to deal with an enduring guerrilla campaign. That could have been achieved more quickly, and probably with less bloodshed had the Biden administration not done its best to slow things down. In the north, Israel must decisively attack Hezbollah in order to put a stop to the daily attacks and allow tens of thousands of Israeli citizens to return home. But again, Joe Biden wants to prevent that, at least until after the US elections, despite not having any viable alternative.
Why does the West act in this way? The long-term political warfare campaign to delegitimise Israel through spurious actions in the international courts, mobilise widespread protest and generate hostile media coverage has been so successful that many leaders are afraid to stand up against it. That is despite knowing that Israel’s enemies are our enemies too.