Israel may extend genocide from Gaza to West Bank, warns Jewish historian

By Selen Valente

BRUSSELS (AA) - Jewish historian Ilan Pappe has warned that Israel may extend its genocidal actions from Gaza to the West Bank unless Western powers reconsider their pro-Zionist policies.

"What Israel commits in the Gaza Strip is genocide by all legal definitions," said Pappe, director of the European Centre for Palestine Studies, in an interview with Anadolu in Brussels.

Pappe explained that Israel had already implemented "incremental tools" of oppression through restrictions on food, medicine, and infrastructure access well before 2023.

He expressed concern about the potential expansion of these policies to the West Bank, urging immediate international intervention to prevent such a scenario.

"The whole idea that you deal with antisemitism in Europe by dispossessing the Palestinians is problematic, immoral, and as we can see now, 76 years later, it is not working too well," he stated.

- Shifting power dynamics in West Bank

Pappe highlighted a significant transformation in Israeli politics, pointing to the increasing influence of an "extreme" form of Zionism originating from illegal Israeli settlers in the West Bank.

"These are the people who are now holding power in the government, in the police, and they're beginning to influence other sections of the society," he noted.

According to Pappe, this emerging leadership envisions an Israel extending across all of historic Palestine, with minimal Palestinian presence and little concern for the broader regional consequences.

- Role of regional powers

The historian emphasized the potential role of regional powers, particularly Türkiye, in resolving the crisis. He referenced the Ottoman period as a historical example of peaceful coexistence between Christians, Muslims, and Jews.

He suggested regional powers like Türkiye and Iran could play crucial roles in helping Palestine achieve freedom "because they are very close to the Arab world."

Challenging the European narrative, which often attributes violence to Iran’s policies and Hamas' actions, Pappe argued that these are merely symptoms of the real problem.

"The source of the violence is the forceful takeover of the country of Palestine by Zionism and the continued dispossession of the Palestinians ever since the beginning of the Zionist project in Palestine," he said.

Pappe concluded by emphasizing the need for a fundamental change in the region's governing ideology. He called for replacing current policies with "an ideology that is not racist, is not supporting ethnic cleansing and genocide, but allows people to be equal and live freely."

The Israeli onslaught has killed nearly 42,800 people, mostly women and children, and injured over 100,400 others since Oct. 7 last year following a Hamas attack.

The Israeli army has continued a devastating offensive on the Gaza Strip despite a UN Security Council resolution demanding an immediate cease-fire.

The Israeli onslaught on Gaza has displaced almost the territory’s entire population amid an ongoing blockade that has led to severe shortages of food, clean water, and medicine.

Israel faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its actions in Gaza.