The Legitimacy of Israel Lacks Legal Basis

Some may see Israel as having existed since 1948, but its establishment does not mean it is a state with legal or moral legitimacy. It was not founded on justice or respect for international law; rather, it was built on the ruins of another people with colonial support, executing an exclusionary racist ideological project. It is essential to understand the nature of its origins, the surrounding colonial context, and the interests of the powers that supported it, as well as their contradiction with the principles of international law and human rights.

Israel was proclaimed on May 14, 1948, following Britain's withdrawal from Palestine, and immediately controlled over 78% of historic Palestine, despite UN Partition Resolution 181 granting it only 56%. This declaration coincided with the forced displacement of over 750,000 Palestinians, the destruction of hundreds of villages and towns, and a complete failure to implement the other part of the resolution related to the establishment of the Palestinian state. Thus, the birth of Israel was not the result of a fair settlement; it was imposed by the force of arms and a "fait accompli" policy at the expense of an indigenous people rooted in their land.

UN Resolution 181 was issued by the General Assembly in 1947 when colonial powers, led by Britain and America, exercised significant influence amidst a complete absence of effective Palestinian and Arab representation. The resolution called for the partition of Palestine into two states: Jewish and Arab, with Jerusalem internationalized. However, it is not legally binding because the General Assembly does not have the authority to mandate the creation of states, ignored the right to self-determination for Palestinians, and overlooked the will of the majority population in the country. Despite the passage of more than 75 years, the part relating to the Palestinian state has not been implemented, affirming that this resolution was not a fair legal basis but a tool for political imposition.

According to Article 22 of the League of Nations Covenant, mandates were supposed to prepare peoples for independence, but what happened in Palestine was the exact opposite. The British mandate included the notorious "Balfour Declaration," which granted land that did not belong to the British to those who did not deserve it, witnessed open support for Jewish immigration, arming Zionist organizations, suppressing the Palestinian revolution, and preventing the establishment of Arab national institutions. Britain worked to prepare the land for a settler colonial project serving pure colonial interests: eliminating Jews in Europe and exerting control over the Middle East and its strategic resources.

The Zionism that stood behind the project was not merely a nationalist movement but a European settler colonial project that emerged at the end of the 19th century, led by Theodor Herzl in close alliance with colonial powers. This ideology was based on an exclusionary racist idea that ignored the existence of the indigenous populations and promoted the falsehood of "a land without a people for a people without a land." Zionism sought to replace Palestinian communities with immigrant groups and impose a Jewish state on a land of diverse ethnicities and religions, which contradicts all values of coexistence and justice.

In 1975, the United Nations General Assembly adopted Resolution 3379, which considered Zionism a form of racism and racial discrimination. Although the resolution was later repealed in 1991 under American pressure and blackmail while preparing for the Madrid Peace Conference, the moral and legal content of condemning Zionism remains valid, as its repeal was not for legal reasons but the result of a dubious and deceptive political deal that extracted free recognition of Israel in exchange for promises that were never fulfilled regarding the establishment of a Palestinian state.

Israel's accession to the United Nations in 1949 and its broad political recognition did not come as a result of respect for international law, but due to immense American pressure and blackmail exerted by Washington with the support of most European countries.

However, this recognition did not change the reality:
    • The Palestinian state has not been established.
    • Millions of refugees have not been returned to their lands.
    • Occupation and settlement continue.
    • Dozens of UN resolutions, including binding resolutions from the Security Council, have not been implemented to this day due to the American veto.
International recognition under all these violations does not produce genuine legal legitimacy but reflects political power balances unrelated to concepts of justice or international law.

Moreover, America has not only exerted political pressure but has enacted laws allowing it to use force against any entity implementing the decisions of the International Criminal Court regarding its officials, while the court pursues leaders of states such as Vladimir Putin. Israel and America refuse even to recognize the court and exert public pressure and direct threats against its judges, representing a dangerous precedent in violating international law.

Since its establishment, Israel has committed countless crimes against Palestinians, from the massacres of the Nakba to ongoing aggression. Today, it is accused before the International Criminal Court of committing genocide in Gaza, alongside war crimes and crimes against humanity in the West Bank and Jerusalem:
    • Targeting civilians, hospitals, schools, and infrastructure.
    • Using blockade and starvation as weapons of war.
    • Forced displacement and ethnic cleansing policies.

All these actions deprive Israel of any moral or legal eligibility as a state, cementing it as a racist terrorist gang supported by a colonial power that does not respect international law.

Israel is not a "normal state" but the product of a racist settler project imposed by force at the expense of a rightful people, and its existence is not based on any legal or moral legitimacy but rather on an alliance with brute force and the interests of Western hegemony.

As long as the full rights of the Palestinian people, primarily:
    • The establishment of an independent Palestinian state.
    • The return of refugees.
    • Ending the genocide, occupation, settlement, and discrimination
are not restored, Israel's legitimacy will remain legally and morally challenged, regardless of its international support or military strength.