Neelam Rahim | neelam@radioislam.co.za
3-minute read | 24 September 2025 | 18:00 SAST

Recognition of a Palestinian state by several European countries, hailed by some as a symbolic gesture of solidarity may instead “derail the Palestinians’ most fundamental right,” a political analyst told Radio Islam International.

Ebrahim Thembisa Fakude argued that recognition at this stage risks converting a political promise into a practical barrier to the right of return for refugees scattered since 1948. “Where do they go if you establish a Palestinian state?” he asked, pointing to Palestinians “lingering in refugee camps in Syria, Jordan, Egypt, and other countries” who remain stateless and barred from basic rights.

Fakude warned recognition could freeze refugees into new national identities and effectively force them to “forsake the right of returning to their homes.” He stressed that much of Gaza, he said, “is a huge refugee camp” whose inhabitants were expelled from their homes in 1948 and continue to hope to return.

The analyst dismissed the two-state formula as unrealistic under current conditions, calling it a “pipe dream” that would not resolve core injustices, in particular the right of return. “It is not possible to have a Palestinian state, given the expansionist project led by Benjamin Netanyahu and his zealots,” he said, noting the continuing expansion of settlements and land annexations that have fragmented territory designated for Palestinians.

Fakude also accused many Western governments of hypocrisy: while some move to recognise statehood, they have reportedly failed to support international legal proceedings at the International Court of Justice and the International Criminal Court that address alleged crimes. “They still have not endorsed the case against Israel of genocide in the ICJ,” he said, and “haven’t condemned nor endorsed the case against Benjamin Netanyahu and his defence minister at the ICC.”

Beyond geopolitics, Fakude issued a challenge to Muslim religious leadership. He called for new religious and civic tactics, even proposing a reconsideration of contested terms like jihad to frame a lawful, creative resistance against “these evil human beings,” he emphasised the distinction: “I’m not talking about Jews here, we’re talking about Israelis, those that are perpetuating this evil.”

Looking ahead, Fakude raised the possibility of a one-state future akin to South Africa’s post-apartheid model, saying: “Perhaps Benjamin Netanyahu’s insistence on not creating a Palestinian state will lead to a one-state solution, future generations will decide how they move forward.”

The analyst urged activists and leaders to back international law, sanctions, and concrete measures rather than symbolic recognitions that, he warned, risk entrenching displacement rather than remedying it.

Listen to the full interview on Sabahul Muslim with Moulana Sulaimaan Ravat and Ebrahim Thembisa Fakude.