Senate Democrat says Netanyahu has ‘shut the door’ on two-state solution

Democratic Sen. Chris Van Hollen (Md.) on Sunday argued that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has “shut the door” on efforts for a two-state solution after the war between Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas, which controls Gaza.

Asked on ABC News’s “This Week” about Netanyahu’s recent comment that he was “proud” he prevented the establishment of a Palestinian state, Van Hollen called it a “direct response” to President Biden’s call for a two-state solution, which the senator described as the “only political settlement that’s viable.”

“[Netanayu] has continued to weaken the Palestinian Authority — this is the organization that recognized Israel’s right to exist decades and decades ago,” Van Hollen said. “Instead of trying to find peace or at least preventing the conditions on the ground from changing with additional settlements to allow a two-state solution, he has shut the door on that effort.”

Biden has repeatedly expressed support for Israel’s right to defend itself against Hamas’s Oct. 7 incursion while also reiterating a push for a two-state solution down the road that would see the establishment of an independent Palestinian state alongside Israel under the leadership of the Palestinian Authority.

Israeli leaders have mostly rejected discussions of a two-state solution, with Israeli President Isaac Herzog last week arguing now is not the time to be talking about an independent Palestinian state as Israel continues to recover from Hamas’s Oct. 7 attack, which killed about 1,200 people and saw about 240 people taken hostage.

Israel’s retaliatory response, including airstrikes, ground attacks and bombings in Hamas-run Gaza, has killed more than 18,700 people in the besieged territory, according to the Health Ministry in Gaza. The majority of Gaza’s population — a total of about 2.3 million Palestinians — have been forced out of their homes amid ongoing violence, while hospitals and shelters deal with overcrowding and limited supplies of basic necessities.

“This is where it’s really important that President Biden assert leadership in this moment, in this very dark hour, if there’s going to be any light at the end of the tunnel,” Van Hollen said. “You’re going to have to have a political settlement … not with Hamas, obviously they’re not any partner for peace. We need to end the military threat from Hamas, but you need to have Palestinians who have long accepted Israel’s right to exist to be able to govern and represent the people within the Palestinian area.”

It remains unclear when Israel’s campaign could end in Gaza. Herzog last week said Israel’s efforts in northern Gaza could finish within weeks but declined to assert when the war could end, The Associated Press reported.