Israel-Palestine: No Lasting Peace by Force

The Austrian Centre for Peace (ACP) joins international calls for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire in Gaza, the release of hostages, respect for International Humanitarian Law by all sides and a serious and comprehensive peace process

One month into the most severe escalation in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in at least five decades, more civilians have lost their lives than in that entire preceding period. More than 1400 Israelis, and over 10,000 Palestinians have been killed, and tens of thousands have been wounded. More than a million Palestinians and hundreds of thousands of Israelis are displaced.

Violence has also spread to the West Bank, and the escalating conflict is threatening community relations between Jewish and Arab Israelis, community members of which have made enormous efforts to maintain calm and prevent large scale incidents of violence. The continuation of these hostilities also risks regional conflict, as is already being seen on the border between Lebanon and Israel, where Lebanese and Israeli civilians have already been killed, and thousands on both sides of the border have been displaced.

The ACP calls for an immediate ceasefire and joins voices from around the world in doing so. The unprecedented level of bombing in Gaza must cease entirely, as must the missiles targeting communities in Israel. Those kidnapped must be released unconditionally. The urgent, sustained, and sufficient delivery of humanitarian relief desperately needed, including the restoration of essential civilian infrastructure must be ensured. Gazans must be able to return to their homes. Displaced Israelis must be able to return safely to their homes in the south and north of the country. The violence against Palestinians in Occupied East Jerusalem and the West Bank must end.

International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights Law must be respected by all sides. Each death, whether Israeli or Palestinian, contributes to the enduring intractability of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and at the same time underscores the absolute necessity of ending the violence. Palestinians, and Israelis, deserve to live in security, dignity, and with self-determination. But these will never be achieved through violence or deterrence, rather these will only ensure that all will continue to suffer. Only serious comprehensive negotiations and durable political agreements can ensure a sustainable peace.

Here and elsewhere, we see the consequences of failing to transform conflicts – violence is on a level not recorded since 1994. In Ukraine, Sudan, Congo or elsewhere, war and internal conflict continue unabated, taking the lives of innocent civilians and displacing so many more. Just recently in Nagorno-Karabakh, over 120.000 people were displaced. A life of fear, pain and indignity is becoming the tragic norm in such places. Peacemakers and all others supporting peace around the world must redouble their efforts to push back against this tide. Our common humanity demands it.

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