Afrasianet - Jerusalem is not just a local conflict; it is a measure of the world's commitment to justice. Gaza is not just a battlefield; it is a test of humanity.
From the E1 settlement plan to the occupation of Gaza City, Israel is dismantling any possibility of a Palestinian state.
Israel's aggressive efforts to reshape the geography and politics of Jerusalem and the broader Palestinian territories are neither spontaneous nor defensive. They are the result of a long-term strategy to erase the possibility of Palestinian sovereignty, which some in the international community have recently sought, and to impose an exclusively Israeli narrative of control.
From Jerusalem to Gaza, every destructive move by Israel consolidates its authority, displaces Palestinians, and destabilizes the region. Without serious international intervention, the consequences will extend far beyond the Holy Land.
This shift became apparent in 2017, when U.S. President Donald Trump broke decades of international consensus by recognizing Jerusalem as Israel's unified capital and moving the U.S. embassy there.
This unilateral action, encapsulated in the so-called "Deal of the Century," gave Israel the green light to accelerate its plans in Jerusalem.
Settlements have expanded, Palestinian home demolitions have multiplied, and restrictions on access to holy sites have increased. For the Palestinians, Trump's announcement has not only undermined the two-state solution, but eliminated it entirely.
Israel interpreted Washington's blessing as a license to consolidate sovereignty over Jerusalem at the expense of Palestinian existence and rights. Trump's move only accelerated a process that was already underway. Israel has imposed measures aimed at fragmenting Palestinian society in Jerusalem and imposing its exclusive control over its holy sites.
In 2015, restrictions on access to the Al-Aqsa Mosque and settler incursions sparked the Jerusalem Intifada, which left thousands wounded, detained, and martyred. Two years later, the installation of electronic gates at the entrances to Al-Aqsa sparked mass Palestinian protests, forcing Israel to make an embarrassing retreat.
However, the broader trajectory has not changed: house demolitions have escalated, evictions have continued, and settler groups have stormed the Al-Aqsa Mosque with increasing frequency, often under the direct protection of Israeli security forces.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu himself, along with far-right figures such as Itamar Ben-Gvir, made high-level visits to Silwan, a Palestinian neighborhood in occupied East Jerusalem, and to the Al-Aqsa Mosque to send a message: Jerusalem will be reshaped on Israel's terms, regardless of international law or centuries of religious guardianship.
E1 and the occupied West Bank
This strategy has since extended to the occupied West Bank in ways that reveal its full purpose. In August 2025, Israel revived the long-stalled E1 settlement plan, allowing the construction of some 3,500 housing units east of Jerusalem.
At first glance, this may seem like another expansion of Israel's large-scale illegal settlement enterprise, but its effects are far more devastating. Area E1 is a piece of land that stretches along the occupied West Bank, connecting Jerusalem to Ma'ale Adumim, one of Israel's largest illegal settlements, and dividing it at the same time.
By separating occupied East Jerusalem from the rest of the territory, and separating the communities of the north and south of the West Bank from each other, E1 would make the establishment of a geographically contiguous Palestinian state nearly impossible. Israeli officials did not hesitate to declare their intentions. Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich has explicitly stated that approving construction in E1 "buries the idea of a Palestinian state."
This candor reveals what Palestinians have known for a long time: illegal settlements are not meant to lack housing or security; rather, they are instruments of annexation. Through E1 and similar projects, Israel is formalizing what it calls "de facto sovereignty," expanding its control over the occupied territories, in violation of the Fourth Geneva Convention and repeated UN resolutions.
If the E1 area represents Israel's strategy to divide the occupied West Bank, Gaza reveals the other side of the coin: direct military domination and forced displacement.
In August 2025, Israel approved a plan to take control of Gaza City, which could lead to the displacement of more than a million of its residents under the guise of "security." Families have been ordered to evacuate, forced to seek refuge in unsafe and overcrowded shelters in southern Gaza, while humanitarian reports warn of starvation-related deaths and a worsening humanitarian catastrophe.
By occupying Gaza City, Israel is implementing a plan to permanently reshape this enclave, as it has done in occupied East Jerusalem and the occupied West Bank. Taken together, these developments reveal a coordinated expansion strategy.
In Jerusalem, restrictive measures and provocations at Al-Aqsa seek to reduce the Palestinian presence and strengthen settler sovereignty. In the occupied West Bank, Area E1 aims to fragment Palestinian land to the point where a Palestinian state becomes a fantasy. In Gaza, mass displacement and military occupation signal Israel's intention to completely reshape the area. This is an erasure of the Palestinian existence, and it has always been.
Global Silence, Local Resistance
The consequences are dire and immediate. Palestinian communities, devoid of sovereignty and subject to constant violence, will resist, as they have always been. This resistance, whether in the streets of Jerusalem, in the villages of the occupied West Bank, or in the refugee camps in Gaza, will inevitably be met with more Israeli force, fueling an endless spiral of bloodshed.
Outside of Palestine, these provocations threaten to attract regional powers, destabilizing Jordan, Lebanon, and others.
Jordan, the custodian of the Al-Aqsa Mosque, sees every Israeli attack on Jerusalem as a direct threat to its sovereignty and internal stability , Lebanon, which is already suffering from political paralysis and economic collapse, and faces constant tension along its southern border as Israeli military incursions and airstrikes escalate.
At the same time, Israel has expanded its military presence in the region, striking targets in Syria, Lebanon, and Yemen, most notably an unprovoked attack on Qatar. These actions, while not directly related to Israel's expansionist project in Palestine, show how its military aggression is increasingly destabilizing the Middle East.
The international community cannot stand idly by. Condemnations from Brussels or UN statements are worthless if they are not met with concrete action. Israel has long shown that it will ignore international public opinion unless it faces consequences. What is needed is accountability: pressure through diplomatic isolation, restrictions on arms sales, and sanctions targeting settlement institutions. At the same time, Palestinian rights must be upheld as a binding principle of international law.
Global public opinion is changing. However, this wave must be translated into policies to prevent the tragedy that lies ahead. The alternative is clear: silence will encourage Israel to move forward with annexing the occupied West Bank, displacing Gazans, and canceling the status quo of Jerusalem.
Jerusalem is not just a local conflict; it is a measure of the world's commitment to justice. Gaza is not just a battlefield; it is a test of humanity. The E1 plan is not a technical matter of division; it is a blueprint for the permanent denial of a Palestinian state.
Together, they constitute an expansionist project that threatens not only the Palestinians, but the stability of the entire region. Unless the world moves decisively, Israel's quest for total control will lead us all to endless conflict.