This is the reality of the Israel-Palestinian conflict as we approach the third anniversary of the October 7 massacres. Neither Palestinians nor Israelis want a two-state solution. The Palestinians want to destroy Israel and drive out (or kill) all the Jews. The Israelis want to retain control of all of Eretz Israel (that is, Mandate Palestine), and for the Palestinians to go away, preferably through emigration.
Both sides think they can achieve their objective, and are not interested in being lectured by the UN, the US or the EU. Wars end when one side is ready to admit defeat. We are nowhere near that position.
The effect of the October 7 massacres has been to make the two-state solution impossible by polarising opinion on both sides. This was of course what Hamas and its sponsors in Iran wanted. Hamas wants a world-wide Islamic caliphate, not a Palestinian state. This is why Hamas sees itself as the victor of the Gaza War, despite its comprehensive military defeat.
This "victory" has brought nothing but death and misery to the Gaza Palestinians, who have always been no more than pawns in Iran's geopolitical game. Israel has occupied two-thirds of Gaza and will not withdraw until Hamas is disarmed. Hamas will not agree to disarmament, which would rob it of its reason for existence (to kill Jews). There is no outside force willing or able to disarm Hamas forcibly.
As a result, nearly all of Gaza's 2 million people are now confined, probably permanently, to one-third of its territory, and are totally dependent on international aid, since all of Gaza's agricultural land is in the Israeli zone.
Penny Wong is much the smartest politician in Canberra. She knows these facts as well as I do. So why does she persist in promoting the two-state solution, and accusing Israel of sabotaging it? Answer: for the same reasons she supported recognising the non-existent "State of Palestine":
* to appease Muslim voters in Labor seats, particularly in Sydney.
* to avoid giving offence to our Muslim neighbors Indonesia and Malaysia.
* to keep in good with the "global south" and promote Australia's bid for a seat on the Security Council.
Fortunately, nothing Australia says or does makes the slightest difference to the conflict. Even Trump, for all his bluster, is finding that he has very little ability to influence events. The October 7 massacres made it clear to both Israelis and Palestinians that this is a war to the death, and they will behave accordingly. The rest of the world, including Australia, will have to adjust its thinking or remain irrelevant.
