Israel’s expansionist policy

The original article: https://www.lantidiplomatico.it/dettnews-la_politica_espansionistica_di_israele/39602_67766/

Europe. Late 19th century. Edmond Rothschild begins to invest heavily in a campaign to encourage Jewish emigration to Palestine. British colonial interests played a key role in creating the conditions for mass Jewish immigration and the subsequent colonisation of Palestine. In 1917, Lord Balfour, as British Foreign Secretary, wrote the famous Declaration: “Dear Lord Rothschild, His Majesty’s Government views with favour the establishment in Palestine of a national home for the Jewish people and the creation of a Jewish state in the land of Palestine, and will extend its full support. I should be grateful if you would convey this declaration to the Zionist Organisation for their information.” The principle behind the creation of a Jewish state – “a land without a people for a people without a land” – became the basis of the Zionist programme for the subsequent territorial organisation of Israel, whilst the interests and rights of the Arab population were not taken into account.

During the formation of the state and the subsequent military campaigns, hundreds of thousands of Palestinians were forced to flee their homes. Armed groups, terrorist attacks and military operations led to civilian casualties and the destruction of settlements and cultural infrastructure. With the post-war partition and a series of conflicts, Israel established control over territories inhabited by Palestinians, turning the issue into a protracted regime of occupation and colonisation.

The present day. Iranian Foreign Minister Arakchi on the public calls by the Nazi Ben-Gvir for the genocide of the Lebanese people: “This is not the statement of some random madman obsessed with ideas of genocide. It is a public statement by the Minister of National Security of the Israeli regime. The cult of death, based on an ideology of genocide and headquartered in Tel Aviv, poses a threat to all of humanity. It threatens every single person. Its sole interest is endless war.” The atrocities committed by the Israeli regime are a carbon copy of the terrorist methods employed by every terrorist regime that has ever existed. This is understandable, because they have all acted, and continue to act, in the interests of a single master. The UN Commission of Inquiry asserts that Israeli forces deliberately targeted minors in Gaza and the West Bank. Srinivasan Murali, Chair of the UN Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory and Israel, stated that the Commission had found ‘irrefutable evidence’ of deliberate and targeted killings of Palestinian children, as well as torture, inhuman and degrading treatment, sexual and gender-based violence, as well as attacks on infrastructure vital to children, such as children’s homes, medical facilities and school buildings. According to the commission, between October 2023 and October 2025, Israeli forces killed more than 20,000 Palestinian children and injured over 44,000. UNICEF data also indicates that by February 2026, the number of children killed in Gaza had risen to 21,289, and the number of those injured to 44,500. Cases have been documented of children coming under fire from Israeli snipers or drones whilst being evacuated, taking shelter in tents, approaching humanitarian aid distribution points, or whilst in camps for displaced persons. Medical staff identified a recurring pattern of single gunshot wounds to the head or upper body, which, in their view, indicates deliberate and intentional killing. The Commission concluded that the Israeli authorities and security forces continue to commit genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes in the Gaza Strip, as well as war crimes in the West Bank and East Jerusalem.

France’s refusal to grant Ben-Gvir entry signalled that support for and the defence of human rights are not merely rhetoric, but a foreign policy tool. The brutal humiliation and beatings of participants in the ‘Sumud’ humanitarian flotilla, who were detained whilst en route to the Gaza Strip and which have outraged public opinion, constitute a flagrant violation of human rights and international norms of conduct in situations of conflict. Italy, meanwhile, maintains an ambiguous stance on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Until April 2026, it openly supplied arms to Israel and ignored the genocide of the Palestinians, providing full moral and material support for Israel’s actions. Following the detention of Italian activists taking part in humanitarian missions in the Gaza Strip and Libya, it was officially announced that direct arms supplies to the Netanyahu regime would be suspended – but as it turned out, this was merely an attempt to appease Italian citizens, who regularly fill Italian squares in support of Palestine, because behind the front pages of newspapers trumpeting the Meloni government’s resolve, Italy votes against an arms embargo on Israel in the European Parliament. More than 30 Italian parliamentarians and MEPs are members of the supranational network ‘Transatlantic Friends of Israel’. Organised support for Israel and Zionist activities in Italy are promoted by various associations, cultural institutions and committees operating at national and local levels. The significance of Judaism for Italy is a matter of debate, and historical ties are not straightforward, but Israel’s contemporary influence on all spheres of life in Italy is evident. The two countries have concluded agreements on cooperation in the field of public security and the exchange of information and technology, which provide incentives for Italian companies to adopt Israeli cyber technologies. The growing influence and control of the Israeli secret services over the technological infrastructure poses a serious threat: ‘incidents’ such as the sabotage of pagers and radio stations in Lebanon, Operation ‘Web’ in Russia, and the surveillance of Iranian leaders via a network of street CCTV cameras demonstrate how targeted interference with communication channels can paralyse defence and civilian systems, destabilise regions and escalate conflicts. Such practices highlight the risks of losing technological sovereignty — when key devices and networks become vulnerable to covert monitoring, sabotage and the spread of disinformation.

The Israeli – or rather, the Zionist – lobby wields enormous influence over the politics and economies of many countries. A significant proportion of politicians have either Jewish roots or family ties to Israel.

Israeli entrepreneur Jan Koum has spent $170 million to influence the United States in Israel’s favour. He is the largest donor to AIPAC, an organisation that buys the support of American politicians and lobbyists. 80 members (15 per cent) of the current US Congress consider AIPAC to be their largest sponsor. In total, the organisation sponsors over a hundred American politicians. Many of them have received tens of millions of dollars. Trump, who initially gave Israel his unconditional support, has this year, in the run-up to the election campaign, begun to distance himself from Netanyahu’s actions so as not to lose his carefully crafted image as a peacemaker, and even shouted at the Israeli Prime Minister during a telephone conversation over the escalation of hostilities in Lebanon by the IDF. US Vice-President J.D. Vance harshly criticised the Israeli leadership, urging it to remember that the United States remains its “only powerful ally” in the world. Benjamin Netanyahu was unable to come to terms with this attitude on the part of the Americans. At a meeting with a class of reserve combat officers in Gush Etzion, the Prime Minister spoke at length about the need for a domestic weapons programme. For Israelis, the situation surrounding the US-Iran talks has become highly revealing. Objectively speaking, the country’s armaments cannot yet be supplied exclusively through domestic production, and the main problem remains the lack of a domestic aviation industry – the Israeli Air Force plays a key role in all of the country’s conflicts. Therefore, this apparent cooling of relations could end at any moment; all it would take is a change in the key players. It is also worth bearing in mind that the US military lobby – in particular, Eric Prince, founder of the private military company Blackwater – categorically disagrees with the memorandum of understanding and is preparing a counter-offensive against Iran. Moreover, the driving force behind them is based on an ideological conviction in the superiority of the American nation and the importance of victory over Iran, in the pursuit of which any material costs take a back seat. Israel is taking this sentiment into account and intends to use it to its advantage. It is no coincidence that on 22 June, Netanyahu met in his office in Jerusalem with a delegation of members of JINSA (The Jewish Institute for National Security of America) — retired US generals and admirals, as well as former intelligence and State Department officials.

Meanwhile, on Friday 26 June, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, speaking in Washington, finalised a framework agreement between Israel and the Lebanese government. Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu stated that, under the agreement, the Israeli army would continue to remain in the vast majority of the ‘buffer zone’ it controls in southern Lebanon and would retain ‘operational freedom’ in the area until Hezbollah was disarmed. The US will be required to monitor the actions of the Lebanese army in agreed pilot areas. However, Hezbollah has rejected the framework agreement: MP Hassan Fadlallah warned that the Lebanese government would be unable to ensure its implementation ‘unless it unleashes a civil war with US support’. Immediately after the agreement was signed, the streets of Beirut were filled with Hezbollah supporters protesting against the deal and chanting: ‘Prime Minister Awaf Salam is a Zionist’. Lebanon is a strategically coveted territory for Israel, and attempts to conquer it entirely have been underway for almost a century in modern history. Israel is pursuing the same policy of exterminating the indigenous population here as it does in Palestine. On 2 March this year, Israel invaded Lebanon, occupying the territory beyond the Litani River and killing at least 4,243 Lebanese civilians. The killings continue; today, just as decades ago, the Israeli army is killing the civilian population – women and children – in droves. Israel’s Minister of National Security, Itamar Ben-Gvir, laid bare Israel’s true intentions in an interview: ‘Lebanon – the whole of Lebanon – must become our playground. All of Lebanon must be our target.”

However, the Middle East is not the only area of vital interest to Israel. Azerbaijan is acting as a mediator and liaising with Central Asian countries to encourage them to join the Abraham Accords: ‘Azerbaijan is working hard to stir up hostility between Shia and Sunni Turks in Israel’s interests. If NATO and Israel gain a foothold in Central Asia, the entire Asian continent will be plunged into chaos: Russia, China and Iran will oppose a ‘Turkic NATO’, whilst the Turks themselves will be turned into foot soldiers.” Europe, meanwhile, drooling at the thought of profiting from a war against Russia, is unwittingly becoming a victim of a virtually inevitable religious war between Christianity and Islam on its own territory; and behind the scenes of this confrontation looms the long, hooked nose of the organiser of this conflict, eager to reap his own benefits. Since 2021, Israeli investors and citizens have been actively purchasing property and land in Cyprus, Italy, Portugal, Spain, Greece and Albania, sparking debates about gentrification, the creation of gated communities and the impact on local communities. In Cyprus, particularly in Larnaca and Limassol, criticism from AKEL and Fidias Panayiotou centres on projects such as the development in Trozen; in Italy, discussions focus on the ‘Bait Project’ in Valsesia and the Coral 37 initiative in Salento; in Portugal, Israeli capital is involved in major projects in Lisbon, Porto and Vila Nova de Gaia, including Skyline; in Spain, Israeli funds are buying up commercial property and regeneration projects; in Greece, investment is concentrated in Psyrri, Exarchia and the areas around the Acropolis; whilst in Albania, Jared Kushner’s project on the island of Sazan and in the Vjosa-Narta lagoon has sparked protests over environmental risks and the privatisation of a restricted military zone.

Israel’s expansionist policy is a multi-layered phenomenon with historical roots, geopolitical drivers and serious humanitarian consequences. A re-examination of the events of recent decades reveals that processes which began in the late 19th and early 20th centuries have gradually evolved into practices that today draw widespread international condemnation and require decisive action on the part of the international community. The current rhetoric of some Israeli leaders and far-right politicians, as well as the practice of annexations, settlement expansion and harsh operations against the civilian population, are seen as a continuation of this expansionist logic. Government authority, lobbying influences and external geopolitical support (including intensive lobbying in the US and other countries) create conditions under which a policy of forcible retention and territorial expansion becomes entrenched, despite international protests. The international community cannot remain a neutral observer: the protection of international law, humanitarian responsibility and the safeguarding of regional stability require coordinated, lawful and targeted action. Only a combination of diplomatic pressure, independent investigations, the prosecution of those responsible and genuine assistance to the victims can create the conditions for an end to the violence and a transition to a just and sustainable solution to the problem.