(JNS) Some may view a vote this week in the United Nations on a resolution to recognize a Palestinian state as a long-awaited step toward peace. In reality, it is profoundly misguided. It rewards terrorism, abandons American hostages, undermines Israel—our strongest ally in the Middle East—and emboldens adversaries who threaten US national security interests. For US policymakers, the stakes could not be higher.
The Palestinian leadership has rejected every serious peace initiative that required compromise, going back to the Peel Commission of 1937. Instead, Hamas, Palestinian Islamic Jihad and the Palestinian Authority have chosen the path of violence: massacring civilians, launching indiscriminate rocket attacks and holding hostages, including Americans. To reward such behavior with statehood is to send a dangerous message: that terrorism yields political prizes.
For the United States, this is not an abstract issue. If Hamas can commit atrocities and still win recognition, then terrorist organizations everywhere—from Hezbollah to ISIS affiliates—will interpret it as a green light. America’s credibility in combating terrorism would be severely weakened, both at the United Nations and on the world stage. The United States cannot afford to allow the world’s premier multilateral body to enshrine the principle that murder and kidnapping can lead to sovereignty.
Dozens of Israelis, both living and dead, remain in Hamas captivity. Yet the UN resolution makes no mention of their plight. Recognition of a Palestinian state does not free a single hostage; if anything, it removes what little leverage the international community retains.
Congress and the administration should be united in demanding that the immediate, unconditional release of hostages—American and Israeli alike—be the first prerequisite for any diplomatic progress. To proceed otherwise is not only a betrayal of American families but an abandonment of the principles of justice and accountability.
Israel is not just another foreign partner. It is America’s most reliable ally in a volatile region, sharing both democratic values and critical intelligence. A premature declaration of Palestinian statehood, absent the dismantling of Hamas and other terror groups, would place Israel in existential danger.
That danger would quickly reverberate beyond Israel’s borders. A strengthened Hamas means a strengthened Iran. It means more weapons for Hezbollah on Israel’s northern frontier, more chaos in the Red Sea threatening global shipping, and more attacks on US troops and allies across the Middle East. For Congress, this is not merely a question of Israel’s security; it is a direct challenge to America’s own strategic interests.
Peace cannot be imposed from conference halls in Turtle Bay. It must be built on mutual recognition, security guarantees and a renunciation of violence. By bypassing negotiations and granting unilateral recognition, the United Nations undermines the very principles of diplomacy that the United States has championed for decades.
The last time Israel ceded territory without enforceable security arrangements—Gaza in 2005—the result was disastrous. Rather than becoming a stepping stone toward peace, Gaza was transformed into a terrorist stronghold. Hamas quickly consolidated power, stockpiled weapons and launched wars against Israel. To repeat that mistake on a larger scale, with international blessing, would be catastrophic.
American policymakers should recall that lesson. Recognizing a Palestinian state under current conditions does not bring the region closer to peace; it only ensures the cycle of violence will deepen.
At this critical moment, US leadership is indispensable. Congress and the administration must make clear that the United States will continue to oppose unilateral recognition of a Palestinian state that rewards terrorism and undermines its closest ally.
Our message should be unambiguous: America stands with Israel; demands the release of all hostages; and insists that any Palestinian state can only emerge from direct negotiations in which terrorism is rejected and Israel’s right to exist is recognized. Anything less is not peacemaking; it is appeasement.
Appeasement has a long and tragic history. It emboldens aggressors, abandons the innocent and leaves democracies less secure. The UN vote on Palestinian statehood is not merely a symbolic gesture. It is a decision that could reshape the region for decades and undermine America’s fight against terrorism worldwide.
Washington cannot stand idly by. It must take a clear stand against rewarding violence. The cause of peace—and the security of America, Israel and the free world—depends on it.
Want more news from Israel?
Click Here to sign up for our FREE daily email updates
