Did Palestinians have to be exterminated for their state to be recognized?

In May 2024, Norway announced its official recognition of a Palestinian state, followed by Ireland and Spain. At the time, it seemed like a courageous gesture in the face of prolonged international silence. In July, France declared its intention to formally recognize Palestine during the upcoming UN General Assembly session in September, and Britain soon followed with a similar step – contingent, however, on a ceasefire in Gaza and renewed momentum toward a two-state solution.

On September 21st, Australia, Canada, the United Kingdom, and Portugal all released statements officially recognizing the State of Palestine.

This shift in European diplomatic positions appeared to rise slowly, in direct proportion to the scale of massacres in Gaza, raising a bitter question: Did the Palestinians have to be exterminated for their state to be recognized?

The contradiction of European standards on the right to self-determination

European countries proudly boast, in their political discourse, of supporting the right to self-determination. Yet when it comes to the Palestinian case, this principle often stumbles in the corridors of geopolitical calculations and Western interests.

This shift in European diplomatic positions appeared to rise slowly, in direct proportion to the scale of massacres in Gaza, raising a bitter question: Did the Palestinians have to be exterminated for their state to be recognized?

When Kosovo declared its independence from Serbia in 2008, most European countries rushed to recognize it on the basis of the “right to self-determination.” And when Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, Europe stood as one to defend Kyiv’s sovereignty and right to independence.

But Palestine, the very word itself, remains burdened by hesitation and clouded with reservations, as if recognizing it were a threat to the moral balance, rather than a correction of it. And although the Israeli occupation has never ceased its expansion and brutality, European recognition remained confined to slogans. Only when the massacres in Gaza escalated to the level of genocide did Europeans take notice.

The Palestinian Authority and the 2011 process

This is not the first time Palestinians have sought international recognition. In 2011, the Palestinian Authority submitted a request for full membership in the United Nations. However, the effort was blocked by a US veto at the Security Council, which pushed the Palestinians to adjust their strategy and turn to the General Assembly instead.

On November 29, 2012, the General Assembly recognized Palestine as a “non-member observer state” with an overwhelming majority of 138 votes. This recognition was a significant moral and symbolic step, but it did not translate into any real political commitment from most European states, the majority of which abstained from voting in favor of the resolution.

Despite the diplomatic efforts exerted by the Palestinian Authority for decades to gain recognition of a Palestinian state within the pre-June 1967 borders, full European recognition remained postponed. It seemed as though Palestinians were required to offer something more than diplomacy – blood, rubble, and forced starvation.

But Palestine, the very word itself, remains encumbered by hesitation and reservations, as if recognizing it were a threat to the moral balance, rather than a correction of it. 

Why does genocide accomplish what politics cannot?

Since the start of the Israeli genocidal war on the Gaza Strip in October 2023, UN and human rights reports have increasingly documented mass killings, systematic starvation, widespread destruction of infrastructure, forced displacement, and the complete isolation of the population from the outside world. A number of these reports concluded that the ongoing violations amounted to genocide under international law.

It was only after this shocking characterization, issued by credible international and human rights bodies, and after waves of popular pressure and protest across many European cities, that Europe – or at least parts of it – began to show a political and moral awakening toward Palestine. The Palestinian cause started shifting from a marginal humanitarian file to an urgent political issue. Recognition of a Palestinian state began to be raised in European parliaments and discussed in decision-making halls and circles, not merely as a diplomatic option but as a belated response to a major catastrophe.

It seems that Europe’s long silence was only shaken by the scenes of bloodshed. Recognition of Palestine did not come as a response to a legal or historical right, but as a reaction to images of massacre – as though genocide, in all its brutality, possessed a power of persuasion that diplomatic pleadings never could.

Here, a profound moral question arises about the reality of international and European engagement with the causes and struggles of peoples. It seems that the world needs to witness an entire people being exterminated before it remembers their existence and their right to life and dignity.

It seems that Europe’s long silence was only shaken by the scenes of bloodshed. Recognition of Palestine did not come as a response to a legal or historical right, but as a reaction to images of massacre – as though genocide, in all its brutality, possessed a power of persuasion that diplomatic pleadings never could.

The blood of Palestinians and the walls of European silence

The path of European recognition of Palestine, even if it appears as a symbolic victory, has come so late it’s almost tragic. When recognition of a right becomes the result of genocide rather than a tool or means to prevent it, we are faced with an unforgivable moral failure. The Palestinians should never have had to be exterminated in order to be recognized. It should have been enough for the world to believe in the justice of their cause from the beginning. Yet what happened is that their blood became the only document capable of breaching the walls of European silence – even if only after a long time.

*NOTE: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author’s and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of Raseef22 English.