A recent report by Middle East Eye warned that the region remains in dangerous slumber while Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu openly speaks of his dream of a “Greater Israel.” Far from being empty rhetoric, this vision represents a threat that cannot be dismissed through negotiations — nor is it one Washington appears willing to curb.
The “Greater Israel” Vision
During a televised interview last week on i24 News, Netanyahu was presented with a symbolic talisman depicting the so-called Promised Land Map. When asked whether he felt connected to this vision of an expanded Israel, Netanyahu answered candidly: “Very much so.”
Though the map was concealed from viewers, it is widely known. The “Greater Israel” project envisions control over:
- All of historic Palestine
- Parts of Jordan, Lebanon, Egypt, Syria, Iraq, and Saudi Arabia
Last year, Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich was filmed defending an Israeli expansion that included Damascus. In January 2024, Israeli politician Avi Lipkin went further, boasting that Israel’s borders would eventually stretch “from Lebanon to the Sahara, and from the Mediterranean to the Euphrates,” even declaring ambitions to seize Makkah, Madinah, and Mount Sinai, claiming they would be “purified.”
This is not fringe rhetoric — it reflects an extremist ideology increasingly mainstreamed in Israeli political discourse.
Starvation as a Weapon of War
The report also highlighted Israel’s use of starvation as a deliberate war tactic in Gaza. When South Africa filed genocide charges against Israel at the International Court of Justice (ICJ), the court gave Israel nine months to present its defense — a deadline that expired in July. Israel successfully requested an additional six months, delaying any judgment until at least 2027, effectively granting it temporary impunity.
During those nine months, over 250 Palestinians — nearly half of them children — died from famine, deliberately engineered by Israel’s blockade and destruction of civilian infrastructure. Thousands more perished under bombardment, and tens of thousands face certain death should Israel proceed with its plan to seize Gaza City.
A leaked cabinet meeting transcript from March, published by Channel 13, revealed Netanyahu and Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer pushing to starve Gaza into submission, against the advice of Israel’s own senior military and intelligence officials. Days later, Netanyahu publicly denied any starvation policy, dismissing the reports as “fantasy” and part of a so-called “anti-Jewish smear campaign.”
Yet the United Nations, UNICEF, and the World Food Programme have all confirmed the famine. Israel’s denials fly in the face of emaciated children’s images and ground reports, claiming they are fabricated — a cynical attempt to erase undeniable war crimes.
Paralyzing International Justice
The Middle East Eye report further exposed how Israel, with U.S. backing, has crippled international accountability mechanisms. Arrest warrants issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC) against Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant have become ineffective, derailed by a coordinated smear campaign.
ICC Prosecutor Karim Khan, who authorized the warrants, was sidelined after facing sexual misconduct allegations — charges he firmly denies. Meanwhile, prepared arrest warrants for Itamar Ben-Gvir (National Security Minister) and Bezalel Smotrich (Finance Minister) remain buried on prosecutors’ desks, despite representing one of the first serious attempts to prosecute apartheid crimes before the ICC.
Instead of upholding justice, the ICC itself has been crippled. The U.S. imposed sanctions on Khan and four ICC judges earlier this year, ensuring the court remains toothless in the face of Israel’s daily crimes: genocide, ethnic cleansing, and apartheid.
Hypocrisy of Regional Powers
While human rights groups celebrated South Africa’s ICJ filing as a breakthrough, that optimism has proven premature. Some countries that voiced solidarity have continued business with Israel. South Africa itself still sells coal to Israel. Turkey, despite fiery rhetoric, allows Azerbaijani oil to flow through its Ceyhan port — fueling Israeli fighter jets bombing Gaza.
As Middle East Eye noted, Turkey’s excuse that it lacks sovereignty over the pipeline is hollow. Would Ankara allow oil to reach Greek warplanes bombing Turkish Cypriots? The double standard is stark.
Genocide by Definition
The report underscored that what is happening in Gaza meets the legal definition of genocide:
- Killing members of a group
- Inflicting serious bodily harm
- Imposing conditions designed to destroy the group in whole or in part
Experts in Holocaust and genocide studies, interviewed by the outlet, agreed.
Dr. Raz Segal, an Israeli-American professor at Stockton University, explained:
“As a scholar of Jewish history and the Holocaust, I take seriously the moral imperative of ‘Never Again.’ The signs of genocide were clear early on. The obligation to prevent genocide arises not when the destruction is complete, but when the risk becomes undeniable.”
Barry Trachtenberg, Professor of Jewish History at Wake Forest University, added:
“From the very beginning, we heard explicit genocidal intent from Israeli leaders — soon followed by actions matching their words. They refused to distinguish civilians from combatants and held the entire population collectively responsible. That is genocide.”
Conclusion
Netanyahu’s vision of a “Greater Israel” stretching across the Middle East is no longer whispered in closed rooms; it is declared openly. Backed by U.S. complicity, shielded from accountability, and fuelled by regional hypocrisy, Israel advances its settler-colonial project with impunity.
But experts are clear: what is unfolding in Gaza is genocide. And the world cannot afford to sit idle, watching one of the gravest crimes of our age unfold under the banner of “security” and “defense.”
