PEACE AT A CROSSROADS

The global stage is once again turning its attention to the long and bitter Israeli-Palestinian conflict, as France and Saudi Arabia advance a new plan for peace at the United Nations General Assembly. This initiative comes amid the catastrophic war in Gaza, where civilian suffering has reached intolerable proportions and displacement has turned an already dire situation into a humanitarian calamity.

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By linking the urgency of an immediate ceasefire to a broader vision of Palestinian statehood, the French-Saudi effort seeks to reignite a conversation the world has largely abandoned: that a viable two-state solution remains the only durable path to peace. With Britain, Canada, and Australia now joining nearly 150 countries in recognising a Palestinian state, momentum is building for a global consensus that could fundamentally alter the diplomatic calculus. The phased plan—ending the war, withdrawing Israeli troops, restoring governance to a demilitarised Palestinian Authority backed by international support, and ultimately pursuing normalisation between Israel and its Arab neighbours—offers a framework that moves beyond rhetoric to concrete steps. It is designed to reconcile the immediate humanitarian imperative with the long-term political settlement that has eluded generations. Yet as promising as this shift appears, the initiative runs directly into the brick wall of entrenched opposition from Israel and the United States, which continue to prioritise short-term military calculations and domestic politics over the need for a durable solution.