As the conflict in Gaza captures global attention, Israel is quietly advancing its political and territorial gains in the occupied West Bank. In response to a recent Hamas-led attack, Israel has approved the largest land grab in the West Bank in three decades, totaling 1,270 hectares in the Jordan Valley, threatening the viability of a future Palestinian state.
Despite criticism from the UN and the International Court of Justice, Israel continues to expand its settlements and has launched a military incursion in the northern West Bank. The ongoing conflict in Gaza provides the perfect cover for Israel to advance its agenda, displacing Palestinians, undermining the Palestinian Authority, and fragmenting the West Bank.
The Significance of the West Bank
Experts emphasize the strategic importance of the West Bank to Israel’s expansionist ambitions. The West Bank serves as a territorial expanse for settlements and a security buffer for the Jewish state, leading to intensified military presence and control over Palestinian territories.
Israeli policies include land confiscation, home demolitions, and arrests to prevent resistance, weakening Palestinian support bases and nationalist movements. This harsh reality of ethnic cleansing and territorial control aims to prevent the establishment of a Palestinian state.
While the world focuses on Gaza, Israel’s actions in the West Bank are shaping the future of the conflict, exploiting the current crisis to accelerate its annexation agenda.