Illustration: Chen Xia/GT

The Palestinian group Hamas launched one of the biggest surprise attacks on Israel last week. The US stated that it stands by Israel firmly and Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrived in Israel on Thursday to show the US support. Nikki Haley, former UN ambassador and South Carolina governor, said that this is not just an attack on Israel - this was an attack on America. 

This position is very dangerous and inflammatory. The US supporting Israel unconditionally while disregarding the legitimate interests of the Palestinians will make the situation even worse. Haley and other American politicians are blaming the Hamas, but the issue is much more than Hamas. The issue involving the Palestinians has been everlasting since 1947. The real issue really centers on the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people. They want to create their own legitimate, legally recognized country. The route to take is to come up with a lasting solution for the Israel-Palestine issue to ensure peace. If the US does not build everlasting peace between the Israelis and the Palestinians, they will lose any prospect of lasting peace.

But in recent years, the US and several other countries have not considered the possibility of an independent state of Palestine. They even want to create a situation where the Palestinians will no longer have their own independent state. And for the US, Palestine would just be folded into the state of Israel as part of Israel, rather than having any chance to establish a real independent state.

The way the US is handling this Palestine-Israel conflict is another example of the US' lack of wisdom and courage to do the right thing. The US has been caught off guard. It is actually caught in a situation where it does not have a real, pragmatic, realistic solution. Because of the way it is now working, moving in the wrong direction will actually make the situation even worse. The conflict may develop into a regional conflict and push the Middle East, once again, into a dangerous period of conflict, rivalry, war and confrontation. 

The US has showed its true colors. The US only wants to promote the one-state solution, completely disregarding the legitimate interests of the Palestinian people. Compared with the US, China's position is very clear and consistent. China supports the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people. China supports the two-state solution. China supports peace. The difference between China and the US as far as this conflict between Israel and Palestine is concerned is night and day. 

Now, it is unrealistic for the US to expect China to behave as they are behaving. It is also a great miscalculation for the US to expect other countries, especially countries like Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Iran and Syria, to follow them. These are important Islamic countries. They are true brothers and sisters of the Palestinian people. They cannot afford to see the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people be trampled upon and violated.

The US really needs to see things as they are, rather than being blinded, otherwise it is going to lose friends, especially among the Arab world and the Muslim world. Any condemnation of terrorism should not be a disguise or an excuse to disregard and completely reduce to ashes the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people. History will look back at what is happening today to make a final judgment, that those who really support the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people are true friends of the Arabs, of the Muslim world and of the Islamic countries. China is indeed a true friend of the Muslim world, the Arab countries and the Islamic civilization.

The author is a chair professor at Soochow University and Vice President of the Center for China and Globalization. opinion@globaltimes.com.cn