Israeli and Palestinian civil society groups will meet in Paris on Friday to urge the international community not to abandon a two-state solution, as France seeks to keep the issue on the agenda amid the ongoing war in the Middle East.
Foreign ministers and senior officials from dozens of countries are expected to attend the meeting, which comes one year after the United Nations-backed New York Declaration set out a roadmap towards Palestinian statehood and encouraged a number of countries, including France, the United Kingdom and Canada, to recognise a Palestinian state – which they went on to do in September last year.
France says the gathering is intended to maintain momentum behind a negotiated settlement to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, at a time when efforts to implement a ceasefire in Gaza have stalled.
The conference is due to end with an eight-point "Call for Action" urging a permanent ceasefire, a halt to settlements, the reconstruction of Gaza, governance reforms and stronger international backing for civil society.
Peace efforts
The document is set to be presented to G7 leaders when they meet in the French Alps from Monday.
"Given the current situation in the region, marked by seemingly endless conflicts, too many civilian casualties and a cycle of violence, and in light of the stalled implementation of the Gaza ceasefire ... we believe this conference is now more essential and urgent than ever," France's Foreign Ministry spokesperson said on Thursday.
The action plan says Gaza has been devastated and that continued illegal Israeli settlement expansion is undermining prospects for a future Palestinian state.
It warns that Israelis and Palestinians remain "trapped in fear, insecurity, and trauma" and that "the window for a solution remains open, but it is narrowing".
The conference comes amid increasing violence by Israeli settlers in the occupied West Bank and growing criticism in several Western countries of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government over settlement expansion.
Criticism by activists
France, the UK, Canada, and Norway announced coordinated sanctions on Tuesday against Israeli networks involved in financing, enabling and carrying out violence in the occupied West Bank.
Israel and the United States have declined to attend the conference.
"The ambassador was invited but will not attend the conference, as it has nothing to do with promoting peace," the Israeli embassy said in a statement. "France cannot act as a mediator between Israel and the Palestinians. Regarding the two-state solution, the ambassador recalls that the Palestinians have rejected proposals to establish a Palestinian state on five occasions."
The conference has also drawn criticism from some Israeli and Palestinian peace activists.
"We have always talked among ourselves, that has never been a problem. Dialogue is an integral part of resistance to colonial situations. And personal relationships are the easiest thing," Yaël Lerer, a French-Israeli activist told RFI.
Lerer said there was no need to create another forum for dialogue between activists.
"The urgent question now is how to stop Israel, how to stop its genocidal policy and how to respect international law... Which we are not doing", she said.
"We talk about solutions, we talk about peace, we talk about dialogue but people are being killed every day... [This conference] does not interest me. It's there so that we do not talk about what we need to talk about. Inaction is complicity."
Lerer and other activists are calling for sanctions against Israel, including the suspension of the free trade agreement between Israel and the European Union.
(with newswires)
