UN warns of last chance for two-state Israeli-Palestinian solution

Palestinian children stand and watch as Hamas fighters take up a position ahead of handing over four bodies to the Red Cross in Khan Younis, southern Gaza Strip, on Feb. 20, 2025. (Abdel Kareem Hana / AP Photo)

The Middle East is undergoing changes that could represent the last chance for the long-sought goal of a two-state solution to end the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, a United Nations official said Tuesday.

Sigrid Kaag, the UN envoy for the peace process in the region, also warned against calls for Israel to annex the occupied West Bank.

“The Middle East today is undergoing rapid transformation -- its scope and impact remain uncertain, but it also presents a historic opportunity,” Kaag told the UN Security Council.

“The people of the region can emerge from this period with peace, security, and dignity. However, this may be our last chance to achieve the two-state solution,” said Kaag.

She said Israeli settlement building in the West Bank, Israeli military operations in this occupied territory “and continued calls for annexation, present an existential threat to the prospect of a viable and independent Palestinian State and thereby the two-state solution.”

Kaag called on Hamas and Israel to agree on the second phase of the ceasefire in the Gaza war and avoid a resumption of fighting.

The international community must ensure that Gaza -- which President Donald Trump wants to put under U.S. control, displacing its entire population -- must be part of a future Palestinian state joining it with the West Bank and east Jerusalem, she said.

“Palestinian civilians must be able to resume their lives, to rebuild, and to construct their future in Gaza,” said Kaag.