No two-state solution? Hamas-led factions won’t stop resistance

GAZA/UNITED NATIONS: Palestinian resistance will not stop until “the occupation” ends and an independent, fully sovereign state with Jerusalem as its capital is established, Hamas-led factions said on Thursday in response to “the New York” declaration calling for the group to lay down the arms.

A declaration issued on Tuesday by Saudi Arabia and France, backed by Egypt, Qatar and the Arab League, called for Hamas to disarm and hand over its weapons to the Palestinian Authority, which they say should rule across all Palestinian territories.

Read more: US sanctions Palestinian Authority officials, Witkoff in Israel

Saudi Arabia and France are seeking further global support for the declaration outlining steps towards implementing a two-state solution.

The latest announcement reflects the stance of these groups which are not ready to recognise Israel and thus oppose the two-state solution.

It is despite the fact that several Arab nations — including Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Egypt — are demanding that Hamas lay down its arms and agree to a two-state solution.

Meanwhile, the entire Arab League, the European Union and 17 other countries backed the New York Declaration.

On the other hand, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bahrain, Jordan and Syria are Arab nations have banned the Muslim Brotherhood — an organisation having views similar to that of Hamas because of ideological similarities.

Therefore, the refusal to lay down arms may hardened their stance towards Hamas as well.

NEW YORK DECLARATION

On Tuesday, Saudi Arabia and France called on countries at the United Nations to support a declaration that outlines “tangible, timebound, and irreversible steps” towards implementing a two-state solution between Israel and the Palestinians.

The seven-page declaration is the result of an international at the UN this week — hosted by Saudi Arabia and France — on the decades-long conflict. The United States and Israel boycotted the event.

“We call on you to support this document before the end of the 79th session of the General Assembly by contacting the missions of Saudi Arabia and France in New York,” Saudi Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan Al-Saud told the conference on Tuesday. The 80th UN General Assembly is due to start in September.

The first step outlined in the declaration is to end the 22-month war between Israel and Palestinian militants Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

“Following the ceasefire, a transitional administrative committee must be immediately established to operate in Gaza under the umbrella of the Palestinian Authority,” it reads. The Palestinian Authority currently exercises limited self-rule in the West Bank under Israeli occupation.

The declaration supports the deployment of a temporary international stabilization mission, mandated by the UN Security Council, and welcomes “the readiness expressed by some member states to contribute troops”.

Read more: Portugal mulls over recognising Palestinian state, Gaza gets more attention

It calls on Israel’s leadership to “issue a clear public commitment to the two-state solution, including a sovereign and viable Palestinian State”, to immediately end violence and incitement against Palestinians, and to halt all settlement, land grabs, and annexation activities in the Occupied Palestinian Territories, including East Jerusalem.

GAZA

The declaration commits to adopting restrictive measures against violent extremist settlers and those who support illegal settlements, and adopting targeted measures “against entities and individuals acting against the principle of the peaceful settlement of the question of Palestine, through violence or acts of terrorism, and in breach of international law.”

It also describes regional integration and independent Palestinian statehood as “intertwined objectives.”

“Only by ending the war in Gaza, releasing all hostages, ending occupation, rejecting violence and terror, realizing an independent, sovereign, and democratic Palestinian State, ending the occupation of all Arab territories and providing solid security guarantees for Israel and Palestine, can normal relations and coexistence among the region’s peoples and States be achieved,” it reads.