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During its 12-day war with Iran, Israel killed 870 Palestinians in Gaza. However, few mentioned it, as the event that was grabbing the headlines was the Israel-Iran war. This was the perfect excuse for Tel Aviv to shift the public discourse away from its ongoing genocide.

For Israel, the West’s complacency could no longer be sustained. Western leaders could no longer go against public opinion. That is why Israel needed a way to shift the public discourse and delay any discussion regarding ending the assault on Gaza.

The declared main objective of the military campaign is to free the hostages, but as time passes it becomes more and more obvious that the true objective of the Netanyahu government is to eliminate the Palestinian people. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s other important goal is to stay in power and out of jail. As former US President Bill Clinton said this week, Netanyahu needs war to cling to power. He added that it is up to President Donald Trump to stop him.

Here we have contradictory objectives, even a potential clash. Trump came to power with the promise to finish forever wars. But that will be difficult with Netanyahu. Trump worked toward a quick end to the war between Israel and Iran. As soon as the ceasefire came into effect, Israel found an excuse to break it. Trump went ballistic on both Israel and Iran, saying that they do not know what they are doing.

Netanyahu’s plan is to take over Gaza and the West Bank. It is an open secret. When he spoke at the UN General Assembly in September 2023, he showed a map of the Middle East in which the Palestinian territories were swallowed up by Israel. The subsequent Oct. 7 attacks gave him a perfect opportunity to execute his plan.

As he got the US sucked into the Iran conflict, the Israeli PM is probably planning to get Washington involved in other conflicts too

Dr. Dania Koleilat Khatib

Ethnic cleansing is the goal. This is not only the goal of Netanyahu, but also that of many Israelis. A shocking survey of Jewish Israelis conducted by Pennsylvania State University in May showed that 82 percent support the ethnic cleansing of Palestinians in Gaza.

This view did not come out of the blue or because Israelis are cruel. It is due to the propaganda that the average Israeli is bombarded with all day, every day. This government propaganda promotes the Likud agenda of expulsion and blocks the path to any reconciliation between the Palestinians and the Israelis. The goals of Likud and Netanyahu are now the general public’s goals. However, Netanyahu has to deliver on them to become a hero of the people.

Thinking from Netanyahu’s perspective, if he achieves the goal that the overwhelming majority of Jewish Israelis support, he will be forgiven, he will not be threatened anymore. His rule will be consolidated. However, there is a hurdle in achieving this apocalyptic vision: the international community. Even the staunchest supporter of Israel cannot support a genocide. Day by day, the genocide is becoming more obvious and more difficult to hide.

Unlike the Second World War era, ethnic cleansing and genocide are today difficult to hide or digest. Netanyahu cannot repeat what Hitler did with the Jews or what Stalin did with the Tatars and get away with it. Times are different. The media, especially social media, shows everything in real time. The tagline “Israel needs to defend itself” does not pan out when Israel guns down civilians going to get food distributed by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation.

As he got the US sucked into the Iran conflict, the Israeli PM is probably planning to get Washington involved in other conflicts too. Israel has a strong domestic lobby in the US that influences Democrats and Republicans alike. Mainstream media outlets like Fox News, which is owned by Ruppert Murdoch, push a pro-Israel worldview to the average American viewer. The pro-Israel lobby previously promoted the war in Iraq. It promoted America’s attack on Iran and will probably push for further American involvement in conflicts that serve Israel’s interests — or, more precisely, Netanyahu’s interests.

Netanyahu needs another war. He needs to distract the world. He needs to convince the world that Israel is under attack

Dr. Dania Koleilat Khatib

Netanyahu needs another war. He needs to distract the world. He needs to convince the world that Israel is under attack. He plays the victim as he butchers civilians in Gaza while they are seeking aid and kicks Palestinians out of their homes in the West Bank, using gruesome and cowardly settlers who are protected by the Israeli army.

However, this task is not as easy as expected. Egypt has stood firm. It will not allow the expulsion of Palestinians from Gaza into Sinai. On the other hand, while Netanyahu’s Israel has killed tens of thousands of Palestinians, it will not be able to kill all of them. That is what a friend of mine, a pastor from Palestine, once told me: “They will never be able to kill all of us.” Hence, Netanyahu’s policy of creating and extending conflict to cover up his genocide will end badly.

He will not be able to sustain American and Western support for his endless wars, nor will he be able to finish the job of exterminating the Palestinian people. In the US, figures who were traditionally supportive of Israel, like Steve Bannon, are already questioning why the country should follow Israel and get engulfed in unnecessary wars. Netanyahu does not know how to end his wars. He probably wants to end them only when he finishes the job of exterminating the Palestinians. However, this will not be achieved. The most likely scenario is that the US will reach a point where it will be fed up with Israel and Netanyahu. This would be a bad outcome for Netanyahu and Israel.

• Dr. Dania Koleilat Khatib is a specialist in US-Arab relations with a focus on lobbying. She is co-founder of the Research Center for Cooperation and Peace Building, a Lebanese nongovernmental organization focused on Track II.