View / Recognizing Palestine is a reward for Israel, not Hamas

Many may belittle — or criticize — the historic events that unfolded at the United Nations on Monday. The recognition of Palestine by France, the UK, and other Western powers, and the renewed global momentum behind a two-state solution, were met with skepticism in some quarters, cynicism in others.

Yet what happened in New York was not just symbolic diplomacy: It was a seismic shift in the global consensus that could redefine the trajectory of one of the world’s longest and most painful conflicts.

Predictably, many rushed to label recognition as a “reward for Hamas,” parroting Israeli government talking points. The atrocities of Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023 massacre in Israel are used as proof that the Palestinian cause has been hijacked by terror. But the emerging global consensus is that recognizing Palestinian statehood is the antidote to Hamas’ existence. It rejects the group’s ideology and tactics, and strips away its raison d’être.

Recognition of Palestine inherently affirms recognition of Israel. Even countries like Iran, which have long used the Palestinian cause as a pretext for hostility, would now face a diplomatic reckoning. The logic is simple: If Palestine exists as a sovereign state, then hostility toward Israel loses its ideological justification.

Hardliners on all sides — in Israel, Iran, and Hamas itself — are deeply unsettled by this shift. They have long worked to undermine the Palestinian Authority, the only legitimate representative of the Palestinian people. Their shared interest in perpetuating instability is no coincidence. Extremism thrives in the absence of hope.

Hamas’ attack on Oct. 7 was not only terrorism — it was sabotage, aimed at derailing Saudi and regional efforts to link recognition of Palestine with normalization with Israel. This was not the first time Hamas played the spoiler. In 2003, it torpedoed the Roadmap to Peace with a series of bus bombings. In 2007, it undermined the Annapolis Conference. And in 2020, it rejected the Trump peace plan outright. Hamas has consistently chosen violence over diplomacy, not because it seeks justice, but because it fears irrelevance.

Yet, in a twist of irony, recognizing Palestine may serve an unlikely beneficiary: Israel itself. The Jewish state now finds itself in a corner. If the two-state solution is abandoned and a one-state reality emerges, Israel risks becoming an apartheid regime. It will continue to face isolation, sanctions, and moral condemnation. Alternatively, if it embraces equal rights for all, it may cease to be a Jewish-majority state. Neither option is sustainable.

A Palestinian state will give Israel a partner responsible for its own territory, its own governance, and its own security. This means that any terrorist activity originating from Palestinian soil becomes the responsibility of the new government, which will be held accountable under international law. For Palestinians, it would finally give them the protections and rights enshrined by UN membership.

For the region, it would be a rebirth. A new reality where Palestinians live in peace, and Israel enjoys security and normalized ties with its neighbors. This vision is not utopian. It is achievable. It is logical. And it is long overdue.

The pressure is now on the Trump administration. With little prospects of progress under Israel’s current leadership, Washington carries the burden. The potential prize for the US president is not a medal in Stockholm, but a place in history as the person who brokered the end of one of the world’s most intractable conflicts.

What happened on Sept. 22, 2025, in New York wasn’t a reward for Hamas. It was a rejection of extremism, a rebuke of occupation, and a reaffirmation of diplomacy. Above all, it was a reward for peace — and for those willing to pursue it.