Anon09/21/25, 19:52No.1440455
The Israeli prime minister hinted at part of what would come. He said Israel has doubled Jewish settlements in the occupied West Bank, which are considered illegal under international law, “and we will continue on this path.”For weeks, Israel had accused Western countries of recognizing a Palestinian state only for domestic politics reasons, insisting that the symbolic move wouldn’t change the reality on the ground. But now that the moment is here, Israel is lashing out.Netanyahu’s far-right allies are pushing him to go as far as he can, calling for Israel to annex the entire West Bank or large swaths of it. Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich said the “only response” is annexation of the entire West Bank and “removing the foolish idea of a Palestinian state from the agenda once and for all.” Minister of National Security Itamar Ben Gvir said he would propose applying sovereignty at the next government meeting and called to dismantle the Palestinian Authority.The fact that the UK, Canada, and Australia are considered among Israel’s closest allies did little to blunt their angry reaction or sway their calls for annexation.Instead of changing Israel’s course, the recognitions only emboldened the government in its diplomatic melee with a growing list of Western countries. The only country Israel needs, according to Netanyahu’s worldview, is the US, and he has gotten the public backing of the Trump administration.But if the question of a Palestinian state has shown the extent of US support for Israel, it has also shown the limits of US influence elsewhere. During a visit to Israel last week, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said he’d spoken with the countries who were set to recognize Palestine to try to convince them that the move was counterproductive.