The expansive territorial ambitions of creating a “Greater Israel” once seemed only to be a right-wing Zionist fantasy. Today, current events in Gaza, Lebanon, and Syria show it might be closer than many ever thought possible. 

The Palestinian Authority is in the midst of a deadly operation it says is to ‘restore law and order’ in the Jenin refugee camp, home to the Jenin Brigade. But as the PA seeks to assert its control, it could risks undermining itself in the process.

Israel bombed a number of schools and shelters for displaced Palestinians in Gaza over the weekend. Witnesses say that the Israeli attacks, which came without warning, caused the bodies of men, women and children to be burned and torn to shreds.

Since the fall of Bashar al-Assad, Israel has carried out an unprovoked invasion of Syria with the support of the U.S. The goals are clear: take strategic land, render Syria defenseless for the future, and redraw the political map of the Middle East. 

After 16 years behind bars, Mufid Abdulqader, a member of the Holy Land Five, has been released from prison into a halfway house. The case of the Holy Land 5 has become a symbol of U.S. unconstitutional overreach since 9/11.

Israeli forces moved further into the Syrian Golan, forcing entire towns to evacuate. While Netanyahu celebrated what he says will be an “eternal” Israeli presence in Syria, U.S. officials insist Israel’s occupation of Syrian lands is “temporary.”

As a ceasefire deal appears to be inching closer in Gaza, Israel continues to carry out massacres in the Strip, killing at least 26 Palestinians in one attack. In the West Bank, Israeli settlers continue to attack Palestinian towns.

With the fall of Syria’s Bashar al-Assad, the truce between Hezbollah and Israel, and reports of progress in Gaza ceasefire talks in Cairo, Palestinians in the Strip are hopeful their reality may soon change.

In the wake of the ceasefire deal between Israel and Lebanon, there has been speculation about a similar deal between Israel and Hamas to finally bring about an end to the genocide in Gaza. But are there reasons to think this time may be different?

Amnesty International joined a growing chorus of human rights experts who say Israel is carrying out a genocide in Gaza. The group called on states and arms suppliers of Israel to “bring Israel’s atrocities…to an immediate end.”