TEHRAN- Israel has been pursuing the annexation of the occupied West Bank while simultaneously conducting an ethnic cleansing campaign in the Gaza Strip.

The Israeli army has massacred more than 43,600 Palestinians in Gaza since declaring war on the territory in October last year.

It is now trying to expel people from the northern part of the enclave. The regime is starving, killing and forcibly displacing Palestinians in northern Gaza to make way for settlers to move in. 

According to health officials in Ramallah, Israeli soldiers and settlers have also killed more than 760 Palestinians in the West Bank since the start of the Gaza onslaught. 

The cabinet of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is further increasing its nefarious activities in the West Bank. 

Settler violence against Palestinian residents in full view of Israeli forces has become a regular occurrence. Settlers brutally victimize Palestinians and burn their homes with impunity. 

Bezalel Smotrich seeks carte blanche from Donald Trump to transform Israeli occupation of the West Bank into annexation. Likewise, Israeli authorities have approved strategic land seizures and major settlement construction. This is while Israeli settlements are illegal and constitute a violation of international law. Furthermore, the demolition of Palestinian property has increased. 

The Netanyahu regime has been emboldened by the unwavering support of the administration of US President Joe Biden. 

The Biden administration has allocated approximately $18 billion in military assistance to Israel, marking a historic expenditure more than a year into the conflict in Gaza.

The election of Donald Trump as the next US president seems to have further egged the regime officials on.

On Monday, the Israeli finance minister welcomed Trump’s victory over Vice President Kamala Harris in last week’s presidential election. 

“Trump’s victory brings an important opportunity for the State of Israel,” Bezalel Smotrich told supporters at a conference of his Religious Zionist Party.

He called for exerting full Israeli sovereignty over parts of the West Bank which amounts to turning the territory’s occupation into annexation in the wake of the president-elect’s victory. 

“Moving forward, I intend to lead a government decision stating that the Israeli government will work with President Trump’s new administration and the international community to apply sovereignty and seek American recognition,” Smotrich said.

Smotrich has already advocated for the creation of a “Jewish state” that would encompass all Palestinian territories and neighboring Arab territories.

He said in October, that this “Jewish state” must extend into Jordan, Lebanon, Egypt, Syria, Iraq, and Saudi Arabia. 

It is yet to be determined if Trump will grant Israel unrestricted authority to proceed with its plan to annex the West Bank, which has been under its occupation since 1967.

Currently, anti-Israel sentiment and resentment against the US over its support for Israel’s genocidal war in Gaza and brutal strikes in Lebanon has reached an all-time high. 

The potential carte blanche to transform the occupation of the West Bank into annexation could incite a new uprising, potentially cascading like a tsunami with unpredictable repercussions for both Israel and the United States.