Netanyahu looking to annex all of Gaza: Report
Netanyahu will be convening his cabinet on Tuesday to make a decision on the matter, Israeli media reported.
- Reporting by Reuters
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Middle East Eye
43 minutes ago
- Middle East Eye
Former Israeli PM slams Netanyahu, says Israel's standing in US is akin to ‘a leper state'
Former Israeli premier Naftali Bennett said Israel's status in the United States 'has never been so bad' and blamed Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government for turning it into 'a leper state'. "Although part of the Trump administration still sympathises with Israel, first and foremost thanks to President Trump himself, many in the right-wing environment in the US, including the MAGA movement, are distancing themselves from Israel," Bennett said in a lengthy post on X, saying that the government is "only terrible damage". He also said, "Even those who were our friends are having a hard time defending the State of Israel," as he lashed out at the reports of starvation in Gaza. "The 'starvation' campaign in Gaza has taken on enormous proportions, and in fact, for most of the American public and various influencers, it is almost a fact. Israel is seen more as a burden and a burden on the US and Americans," he said. Bennett also blamed those who compare starvation in Gaza to the Holocaust for diminishing the memory of the Holocaust. At least 180 Palestinians, including 93 children, have died from hunger or malnutrition in Gaza, according to a Palestinian Health Ministry report on Monday.
Middle East Eye
43 minutes ago
- Middle East Eye
Al-Aqsa Mosque: Palestinians proven right again as Israel ramps up violations
There is something deeply unsettling in the way Arab and Western diplomats continue to dismiss Israeli political declarations as mere rhetoric. Equally puzzling is the extent to which Israeli politicians have proven honest and explicit about their intentions. Now, 21 months into Israel's genocide in Gaza, we can look back and see how Israel has, step by step, implemented nearly all the promises it made on 8 October 2023, while the world has stood by and watched as entire cities were wiped off the face of the earth. Over time, the global consensus has shifted toward acknowledging that what is happening in Gaza is a campaign of extermination and starvation, but only after the catastrophe has taken place. Yet, even as the world follows this unfolding horror, Israel presses on. New MEE newsletter: Jerusalem Dispatch Sign up to get the latest insights and analysis on Israel-Palestine, alongside Turkey Unpacked and other MEE newsletters The rhetoric has not stopped, nor has its implementation. In the Occupied West Bank and Jerusalem, and particularly Al-Aqsa Mosque, Israel continues to advance a policy of irreversible annexation and provocation. Unilateral actions In the past month alone, the Israeli Knesset passed a symbolic but politically significant bill endorsing de facto annexation of the West Bank. Then, in late July, the Ministry of Defence transferred administrative control of the Ibrahimi Mosque in Hebron, second-largest mosque in Palestine, from the Palestinian Waqf and local authorities to the Kiryat Arba Religious Council. Since the 1997 Hebron Protocol, part of the Oslo II Accords, Palestinian authorities - specifically the Islamic Waqf and the Hebron Municipality - were responsible for civil matters concerning the mosque's Muslim section, including safety infrastructure, electricity, sanitation and surveillance systems, while Israeli forces controlled security and Jewish access. However, these administrative and legal constraints, which had previously limited Israeli authorities from altering management structures or making physical changes without Palestinian consent, have now been bypassed or removed by the Israeli military's Civil Administration. Al-Aqsa Mosque: The significance of one of Islam's holiest sites Read More » This shift paves the way for unilateral changes, including construction projects and settler oversight, and is widely condemned as a violation of international law and the long-standing status quo agreement at the site. Over the weekend, Jewish settlers, under heavy police protection, stormed Al-Aqsa Mosque complex in unprecedented numbers. They were led by far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir, who then conducted prayer services inside the complex itself. This marked his eighth such intrusion since the genocide began, and his eleventh since taking office. Whereas in the past, police had restricted Jewish visitors to the eastern plaza and prevented them from praying. Although, according to official Jewish religious authorities, there is a prohibition on Jews entering Al-Aqsa Mosque complex, and despite the status quo arrangement established after the occupation of Jerusalem in 1967 - which prohibits Jews from praying there and leaves its administration in the hands of the Islamic Waqf, allowing only Muslims to pray there - this time, Jewish settlers were allowed access to the entire complex and pray freely. What made this visit even more significant was Ben Gvir's statement during his march to the mosque on Tisha B'Av, the Jewish day of mourning for the destruction of the First and Second Temples. He declared that the day should not only be one of grief but of "building" - the building of the Third Temple. This declaration came only months after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu released a video from tunnels excavated beneath Al-Aqsa Mosque - a decades-long project Palestinians have repeatedly warned threatens the structural foundations of the mosque. They have linked visible erosion and damage to the ongoing Israeli excavation. Palestinian warnings unheeded What's even more frustrating is the international and Arab disregard for what the Palestinians say and warn about. Time and again, the Palestinians have warned about Israeli intentions - especially regarding Al-Aqsa Mosque- and time and again, their warnings were dismissed as baseless. Palestinians' warning that Israel intends to alter the status of Al-Aqsa Mosque is now unfolding before our eyes And now, tragically, the Palestinians were right, as reflected in the press statement from the Jerusalem Governorate that stated: "Today, the spatial division of Al-Aqsa Mosque has begun in an open and dangerous manner, and we warn of a religious war in the region." For decades, Palestinians have warned that Israel intends to alter the status of Al-Aqsa Mosque. Today, this is unfolding before our eyes and we stand witness to these changes. Despite all these developments, a dismissive attitude persists in international diplomatic circles, based on the false assumption that Israel's actions are exaggerated or unserious. Yet each year brings a new level of transgression. Whereas the police once prohibited Jewish prayer inside the mosque complex, today the minister in charge of the police leads it himself. The genocide in Gaza has proven that Israel is not only capable of mass atrocities but it is also emboldened by global impunity. Over the past 21 months, Israel has violated hundreds, if not thousands, of international laws and conventions. Other than the United States, no country would be allowed to behave as Israel does. Even Russia, due to its invasion of Ukraine, remains under heavy sanctions despite its economic and energy importance to Europe. Yet Israel, despite global protests and mass public outcry, continues to enjoy Western and Arab support as it proceeds with the genocide. Rewarding brutality Western countries are still supplying Israel with weapons. Arab regimes are increasingly exploring normalisation, in what can only be interpreted as a reward for Israel's brutality. This reality demands a strategic recalibration from the Palestinians: what does power look like in the 21st century, and how do we confront a world in which genocide is not punished but incentivised? Israel is now pursuing a long-held plan: the mass transfer of Palestinians from Gaza. The only missing component is a willing host country or countries. Since the beginning of the war, Israel has openly floated this plan, and following US President Donald Trump's endorsement of the idea during his presidency, Israel has poured resources into making it a reality. The belief that Israel will simply fail without facing resistance is nothing more than a delusion. Trump's special envoy to the middle east, Steve Witkoff, visited Israel and Gaza recently and declared there is "no famine in Gaza", even as American soldiers and aid workers report catastrophic failures on the ground. If the world continues to dismiss the statements of Israeli politicians, they will not stop at the genocide in Gaza The same envoy continues to support the so-called Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), the Israeli-controlled organisation managing humanitarian flows, despite overwhelming evidence of its complicity. The developments on the ground only reaffirm that the Palestinian people are alone in this struggle, forced to confront a state to which international law does not apply - a state capable of committing genocide and starvation with the support of western governments. Israel is now exploiting the situation to engineer the demography and geography of the land from the river to the sea, and seemingly also within Al-Aqsa Mosque. It's true that Israel has not succeeded in achieving all of its objectives and continues to pay a price in the form of soldiers' lives and social instability. I am convinced that international public opinion will eventually translate into political action in the future. More importantly, the purpose of this text is not to say "we told you so", but to warn you: if the world continues to dismiss the statements of Israeli politicians, they will not stop at the genocide in Gaza. The views expressed in this article belong to the author and do not necessarily reflect the editorial policy of Middle East Eye.
The National
an hour ago
- The National
Israel divided as reports indicate plans for 'full occupation' of Gaza
Bitter rifts are emerging in Israel over reports that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is planning a full military occupation of Gaza, a move critics say would endanger hostages held in the strip and push the country's exhausted armed forces to breaking point. The Prime Minister has been hinting in recent days of an expanded campaign in the Palestinian enclave, with senior officials telling Israeli media major operations are imminent. Mr Netanyahu is reportedly using the term 'occupation' to describe the plan in conversations with ministers. Israeli network Channel 12 said the Prime Minister would hold a security meeting about the plan on Tuesday, with a Cabinet meeting reportedly set to take place at some point this week. The new plan reportedly involves pushing troops into the estimated 25 per cent of Gaza's territory that the Israeli military has not yet occupied. These areas include central parts of refugee camps that Israel has so far deemed too dangerous to enter for fear of endangering the lives of hostages that might be held there. There are no indications from Israel about what such a plan would mean for Gaza's civilians, whose lives are already blighted by rising starvation after months of an Israeli blockade. Efforts in recent weeks to increase aid distribution have been chaotic and a major new military operation would be expected to complicate humanitarian efforts. Israeli military chief Lt Gen Eyal Zamir is reported to be strongly opposed to the plan, given the complexity of dismantling areas in which Hamas is deeply embedded. The toll such an operation would take on exhausted troops after 669 days of war is also thought to be of concern. Many human rights bodies considered Gaza to fully occupied even before the war, with Israel controlling access by land and sea as well as the territory's airspace. Mr Netanyahu's plan would, however, extend Israeli control over the strip to a new level, paving the way for a potential total displacement of Gazan civilians and even annexation, a major goal of some members of his far-right government who want Israel to resettle the area. Far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir piled pressure on the army chief over his alleged reluctance. 'The Chief of Staff is required to state clearly that he will fully comply with the directives of the political echelon, even if a decision is made for conquest and decisive action,' the minister wrote on X. Other ministers expressed support for Lt Gen Zamir, with Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar writing on X: 'The Chief of Staff is required to express his professional opinion clearly and unequivocally to the political echelon. I am convinced that he will do so.' Opposition leader Yair Lapid called for any differences over the occupation plan to remain behind closed doors, writing on X that 'soldiers don't need to think that a divided and conflicted leadership is leading them, that the political echelon does not respect their commander, that they are selling them out for a headline'. The latest tension comes against a backdrop of rising anger in Israel over the war, now in its 23rd month. Hundreds of retired Israeli security officials, including former heads of intelligence agencies, urged US President Donald Trump on Monday to pressure Israel's leadership to end the war. 'It is our professional judgment that Hamas no longer poses a strategic threat to Israel,' the former officials wrote in an open letter.
