Why it matters:
Held as Gaza endures relentless Israeli bombardment, the forum underscores a critical shift in discourse: from failed diplomatic formulas to calls for structural change. In a moment when unity among Palestinians is more vital than ever, the event pushes the global debate beyond symbolic solutions.
The big picture:
The session featured robust discussion on the collapse of the two-state solution, the failures of international institutions, and the global realignment of power—especially the roles of China and Russia in reshaping the geopolitical equation. It also amplified growing calls for global civil society to take up the mantle where states have faltered.
What they’re saying:
Prof. Mazin Qumsiyeh, renowned human rights activist and 2025 Nobel Peace Prize nominee: “The two-state solution has become a diplomatic illusion. A single democratic state for all inhabitants is the only just way forward.”
Nahid Pour-Eisa, researcher on China and West Asia: “Palestine is not a local issue—it’s a crisis woven into the fabric of global power politics.”
Dr. Hamidreza Gholamzadeh, founder of the House of Diplomacy: “International institutions have failed to curb Israeli crimes. Real pressure must now come from global grassroots movements like BDS.”
Key points:
- Two-state solution discredited: Consensus among speakers that it no longer represents a viable or just outcome.
- Single democratic state proposed: A vision where Muslims, Jews, and Christians live with equal rights.
- Role of global powers: Shift in influence toward a multipolar world, with China and Russia increasingly critical players.
- Civil resistance: Emphasis on non-state activism and global campaigns to challenge structural injustice.
- Institutional failures: UN bodies and other international actors were criticized for double standards and ineffectiveness.
Go deeper:
The forum marked a significant intellectual pivot: away from diplomatic repetition and toward a rights-based framework grounded in anti-apartheid principles and post-colonial justice. It signaled that peace without justice, refugee return, and dismantling of occupation structures cannot be sustained or legitimized.
Speakers urged academics, media, and civil society to step up where governments have failed. As international legal and political institutions falter, they argued, only a collective global push rooted in human dignity and equality can deliver real peace for Palestine.
Mojtaba Darabi
