Israel’s Silent Map Erases Palestine

 

Israel redraws Palestine in shadows. Knesset’s 71-13 vote for sovereignty over West Bank settlements signals de facto annexation, crushing Palestinian statehood under nationalist rhetoric.

Far from symbolic, it’s annexation’s blueprint. Renaming “West Bank” as “Judea and Samaria,” Israel crafts legal mechanisms for permanent control, defying international law with Western complicity.

Netanyahu’s maneuver props his coalition. By appeasing far-right Smotrich and Ben Gvir, the vote averts collapse while Gaza truce talks falter. Western powers, with $46 billion in EU trade and $20 billion in U.S. aid, enable Israel’s impunity. Palestinian experts warn of apartheid’s grip, as settlements become cities under civilian rule, dismantling Oslo’s framework.

Palestinians face a critical fight. Calls for unified resistance and ending security ties grow louder. Israel’s silent map-drawing, shielded by Western silence and antisemitism claims, normalizes settler-colonial dominance, burying peace in geopolitical shadows.