On the Road to Annexation, Israel Is Turning the West Bank Into Gaza - Haaretz Editorial - Haaretz.com
Israel has decided to turn the West Bank into the Gaza Strip. The methods of operation are the same, as is the weaponry. The goals are similar too, and the results won't be long in coming: Israel will soon awaken to another Gaza, this time on its eastern border, with all that this implies.
Since the outbreak of the war, Israel has changed its policy in the West Bank, and the Palestinians living there have faced a new, even harsher reality. The first step was the complete closure and cancellation of all the work permits in Israel. Freedom of movement was reduced to a minimum, so access to workplaces was also restricted inside the West Bank, and the economic situation deteriorated even further.
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And then, the army started using new methods of combat, some of which until then had been implemented only in Gaza and Lebanon: Drones and air force planes have become the main instrument of destruction against wanted suspects as well as innocent people, in numbers unseen since the second intifada. Israel is ignoring Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas' intention to visit Gaza, a visit that could help bring about a solution to the question of who will run the Rafah crossing, while also continuing to damage the PA's budget. In essence, the new policy is about advancing the West Bank's annexation at the same time that the occupation is being judged in international forums.
Under the hazy justification of "the war on terror," since October 7 the army has killed at least 621 West Bank Palestinians, according to data from B'Tselem. Figures compiled by the UN show that at least 140 of them were killed in 50 airstrikes. At the same time, settler violence has considerably escalated, reaching unprecedented levels. Pogroms and riots in Palestinian villages have become routine, mostly under the army's protection and all without any genuine intervention by the army.
Ten days ago, the army intensified the combat and launched Operation Summer Camps, which is currently underway. The reins have been loosened and the army is now operating like it does in Gaza. At least 38 Palestinians have been killed in the West Bank, including at least nine minors. The destruction sown by the army in the refugee camps resembles the destruction in Gaza. These have always been futile operations whose only result, in the absence of a political plan, is pushing West Bank residents further into despair and toward armed struggle.
The minister of the West Bank, Bezalel Smotrich, and the national security minister, Itamar Ben-Gvir, under Netanyahu's leadership and with the army's participation, are doing everything they can to open another front in addition to the ones that are already aflame. They will soon get their wish.
The above article is Haaretz's lead editorial, as published in the Hebrew and English newspapers in Israel.