IN less than a month, Israel has received a second rebuke from the international community which insists that only a two-state solution can give a lasting peace to the Middle East. As French President François Hollande told the Paris gathering of 70 nations on Sunday, a two-state solution wasn’t a dream; it remained “the goal of the entire international community for the future”. The conference communiqué chose not to embarrass US president-elect Donald Trump and avoided a reference in the communiqué to occupied Jerusalem, which he has vowed to recognise as Israel’s capital. But French Foreign Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault minced no words and warned in a TV interview that such a move could have “extremely serious consequences”. In fact, Mr Ayrault was blunt. “When you are president of the United States, you cannot take such a stubborn and such a unilateral move on the issue,” he said, adding that the Trump administration would find it difficult to implement it.

Given its track record, Israel’s rejection of the Paris call shouldn’t surprise the world with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accusing the 69 nations (Britain didn’t sign the communiqué) of imposing conditions “incompatible with our needs”. Israel’s fear is that the Paris statement could form the basis of a resolution which the Security Council could pass before the Trump administration is in place. The Security Council’s resolution 2334, passed last month, still seems to rankle with the Likud government. However, US Secretary of State John Kerry was quick to reassure Mr Netanyahu his country would oppose any such move at the UN. With Tel Aviv having shown utter contempt for UN resolutions and international agreements to which America and Israel itself are party, the Paris declaration does little more than prod Israel. With the heart of the Arab world in a shambles and America’s military and diplomatic power at its service, Israel has every reason to display hubris and plan the eventual annexation of all occupied territories, as it has the Golan Heights and eastern Jerusalem.

Published in Dawn, January 17th, 2017