Since October 7, there have been protests across India in support of the Palestinians and Israel, with much different responses from authorities. Palestine solidarity activists have faced a brutal crackdown, while Israel’s allies have had a free hand.

Azad Essa’s new book uncovers Israel and India’s joint history, as well as the affinities between the toxic ideologies ungirding their national projects.

An outpouring of support in India for Israel’s war on “terrorists” can be explained by: India’s rightward drift under Modi, underpinned by hatred for Muslims, and a sense of identity between Zionism and Hindutva, the political philosophy of the ruling party in India. The close ties are also strategic, relating to India’s tensions with Muslim-majority Pakistan.

Benjamin Netanyahu wants as much as he can from the last weeks of the Donald Trump presidency, so he took his time to congratulate Joe Biden– waiting till after midnight last night, many hours after other world leaders had sent Biden their best wishes– then lavishly thanked Trump too.

The UAE had a clear goal in signing a deal with Israel: gaining support and arms from the U.S. This reflects a long pattern of foreign leaders from Egypt to India to Russia being friendly with Israel so as to gain access to Washington. But our press ignores the trend.