How the West Bank pogroms fit into Israel's annexation plan

The recent settler attack on the village of Tell in the occupied West Bank marked a dangerous new escalation. The violence left four Palestinians and two Israeli soldiers dead after a Palestinian villager reportedly seized a weapon from one of the attackers.

Far from being an isolated incident, the events in Tell reflect the intensification of a broader political campaign.

What is happening today is an extension of policies and attacks that began under the current Israeli government. From early on, their agenda called for the annexation of the West Bank.

In practice, although not explicitly stated, the government also adopted what is known as the "Decisive Plan", which is based on confiscating as much Palestinian land as possible, Judaising and settling it, and expelling as many Palestinian residents as possible.

The Netanyahu government, which includes Bezalel Smotrich and Itamar Ben-Gvir, saw an opportunity to expand their project of annexation following the 7 October 2023 attacks.

Israeli leaders launched a war of genocide, displacement and occupation in the Gaza Strip while simultaneously continuing and intensifying their policy of de facto annexation in the West Bank. This has included gradual land seizure, systematic displacement of residents, and the imposition of facts on the ground, paving the way for the declaration of Israeli sovereignty.

The figures speak for themselves

This year, the Israeli government approved the construction of 10,000 settlement units, increased the settlement budget several times, armed settlers with tens of thousands of weapons, and gave them free rein to attack Palestinians and open fire on them.

Attacks by settlers and occupation soldiers have become a daily occurrence.

Statistics indicate that 11,074 attacks were carried out during the first half of this year, including 3,488 by settlers, while occupation soldiers carried out the remainder.

Storming Al-Aqsa Mosque and attacking holy sites has also become a daily practice. Particularly during Jewish religious holidays, thousands of settlers enter the mosque compound and perform religious rituals amid growing calls to demolish it and build the "Temple" in its place.

Since 7 October, more than 1,200 Palestinians have been killed in the West Bank, in addition to thousands wounded. More than 20,000 Palestinians have also been arrested in the West Bank and subjected to torture.

On the ground, the occupation has removed 118 residential communities, demolished thousands of homes, closed water wells, and prevented the drilling of new wells to irrigate farmland in an effort to force residents to leave.

It also destroyed three refugee camps in Jenin and Tulkarm, displacing tens of thousands of people, cut down or destroyed 45,000 trees, including 26,000 olive trees, stole 15,000 heads of livestock, and burned hundreds of homes, vehicles and farms.

At the same time, numerous settlement outposts have been established, including 21 in areas classified as Area B, which are supposed to be under Palestinian civil control.

Meanwhile, the Israeli government has continued to undermine the Palestinian Authority by stripping it of additional powers and transferring them to the Civil Administration under the Israeli Ministry of Defence.

It has withheld more than $5 billion in Palestinian clearance revenues and filled the West Bank with more than 1,200 checkpoints and gates, turning cities, villages and refugee camps into isolated islands and vast prisons.

As a result, only about 10% of West Bank residents now live in Area C, despite it accounting for more than 60% of the territory.

The occupation authorities have also enabled settlers to seize and own so-called "state land", contrary to the Jordanian laws that had previously been in force.

For some time, they have continued the process initiated by previous governments of eliminating the practical distinctions between Areas A, B and C.

Israel does as it pleases

Israeli forces now enter Palestinian cities whenever they choose and carry out whatever operations they wish.

Meanwhile, Smotrich has announced his intention to establish 100 settlement outposts in Area A.

This reality prompted The Elders to warn of the danger of Palestine disappearing from the map because of accelerating settlement expansion, the legalisation of illegal outposts, and the expansion of existing settlements.

The Israeli government exploited the international sympathy it received after 7 October, as well as the world's preoccupation with the Israeli-US war against Iran, to continue its war in the Gaza Strip, albeit at a lower intensity. At the same time, it escalated its assault in the West Bank and completed its policies of ethnic cleansing.

The spread of crime and violence against Palestinians inside Israel, on the other hand, has unsurprisingly been ignored.

Additionally, to confirm that what is taking place is the implementation of a pre-prepared plan rather than merely a reaction to security incidents, one only has to look at the decisions taken by the government following the events in Tell.

It quickly imposed collective punishment, reinforced occupation forces with large numbers of troops, tightened closures and sieges, erected additional checkpoints, restricted movement throughout the West Bank, legalised settlement outposts and approved new ones, and launched widespread arrest campaigns and military raids.

At the same time, it provided protection to settlers who burned homes, farms, vehicles and even mosques.

7 October

It is worth noting that, in an effort to conceal its pre-prepared plans, the occupation has consistently claimed that the West Bank is preparing an imminent 7 October attack.

However, this is a highly unlikely possibility, even if some Palestinians and those in solidarity with their liberation struggle are hoping for it to be the case.

In reality, the West Bank is exposed and in the eye of the storm. Palestinians there lack the means to launch an effective resistance campaign or a new uprising.

What they can do, within their capabilities and the current circumstances, is remain steadfast and organise forms of self-defence using the available means of popular resistance.

This explains why the Palestinian response has been far below the scale of the challenge.

The West Bank has been in a state of exhaustion since 2015, including following the Knife Intifada and subsequent waves of resistance, particularly in Jerusalem, Jenin and Nablus.

It is also linked to the Palestinian leadership's pragmatic policy that accommodates reality rather than seeking to change it without recklessness or adventurism. This policy is based on avoiding confrontation, removing pretexts, waiting, and preserving the leadership, the president and the Palestinian Authority at any cost.

The context has in turn encouraged the occupation and its settlers to continue their expansionist, racist, aggressive and displacement policies.

Palestinian unity

The Israeli strategy is based on emptying the land of its inhabitants, Judaising it, settling it and expelling its residents until the Israeli government believes conditions are suitable for declaring "Greater Israel" from the river to the sea, as a stage towards achieving the broader Zionist project "from the Nile to the Euphrates".

Following October 7, the Israeli government has not hesitated to commit various crimes, including genocide, in response to any form of resistance, even when peaceful and popular.

This has been compounded by the continuation of the destructive Palestinian political, geographical and institutional division. This exists despite the recent war on Gaza and plans to eliminate the Palestinian struggle, circumstances that should have compelled Palestinian unity regardless of political differences.

This deepens feelings of frustration and despair at a time when national unity in the face of existential challenges has become an indispensable necessity rather than merely a political option.

Despite this, Palestinian steadfastness and their continued presence on their land remain the decisive factor in thwarting the Israeli Zionist project.

The Palestinian struggle continues, with an unprecedented global solidarity movement behind it that seems poised for renewed momentum.

Certainly, this international support contrasts with the reality inside Palestine and has not translated into political achievements. This is in part due to the weakness of the Palestinian national movement, which must move beyond paralysis and division and become the driving force behind Arab, Islamic and international mobilisation capable of compelling Washington and Tel Aviv to respect the rights of the Palestinian people.

A weakened power

Israeli military, economic and technological superiority should not obscure the limits of its power or the gap between its ambitions and its ability to achieve them. After all, Israel has appeared dependent on its US patron and incapable of reshaping the Middle East or establishing Greater Israel.

Furthermore, the number of Palestinians in historic Palestine still equals or exceeds the number of Jews. Confiscated land often lacks settlers willing to live there or sufficient soldiers to protect it.

Indeed, Israel's image in the world has been exposed, the Zionist narrative has suffered a major collapse, the weaknesses of the occupation have become evident, and its internal contradictions have deepened.

The clearest evidence is that the Israeli government has failed to achieve a decisive victory on any front, while its popularity continues to decline to the point that its chances of winning the next election are steadily diminishing.

This suggests that the coming months will witness a significant escalation in a final attempt to improve its electoral prospects.

Nevertheless, it is not enough for the official Palestinian response to be limited to appealing to the international community for intervention and protection, or to urging the Palestinian people and their institutions to document Israeli crimes.

There must also be a comprehensive vision and unified leadership, based on an integrated strategy capable of confronting the challenges and risks, while making full use of available opportunities and all means of Palestinian steadfastness and survival. This is particularly the case in areas threatened by genocide, annexation, displacement, settlement expansion and apartheid.

Palestinians must not be deprived of their legitimate right to defend themselves, their families, their communities and their property in accordance with international law.

This requires adopting a comprehensive strategy based on ending the occupation, realising the independence of the State of Palestine, holding Israel accountable for its crimes by imposing boycotts and sanctions, halting arms supplies, withdrawing recognition of Israel by Arab states, and suspending Israel's membership of the UN. Israel should also be prosecuted as an occupying and apartheid state, along with all Israeli officials, rather than punishing only individuals, since these crimes constitute a systematic official policy rather than isolated acts.

It also requires the formation of Palestinian popular protection committees in cities, villages and threatened communities, with official and public support to strengthen Palestinians' ability to defend their existence against the most dangerous settlement project threatening their struggle in decades.

Article translated from Arabic by Afrah Almatwari. To read the original, click here.

Hani Al-Masri is director general of the Palestinian Center for Policy Research and Strategic Studies (MASARAT).

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