Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu angered Palestinians and their defenders Friday after presenting a map of “The New Middle East” without Palestine during his speech to the United Nations General Assembly in New York.

Speaking to a largely empty chamber, Netanyahu—whose far-right government is widely considered the most extreme in Israeli history—showed a series of maps, including one that did not show the West Bank, East Jerusalem, or Gaza. These Palestinian territories have been illegally occupied by Israel since 1967, with the exception of Gaza—from which Israeli forces withdrew in 2005, while maintaining an economic stranglehold over the densely populated coastal strip.

Middle East Eyereported Netanyahu also held up a map of “Israel in 1948”—the year the modern Jewish state was established, largely through the ethnic cleansing of more than 750,000 Arabs—that erroneously included the Palestinian territories as part of Israel.

Palestinian Ambassador to Germany Laith Arafeh said on social media that there is “no greater insult to every foundational principle of the United Nations than seeing Netanyahu display before the UNGA a ‘map of Israel’ that straddles the entire land from the river to the sea, negating Palestine and its people, then attempting to spin the audience with rhetoric about ‘peace’ in the region, all the while entrenching the longest ongoing belligerent occupation in today’s world.”

As Middle East Eye noted:

The inclusion of Palestinian lands (and sometimes land belonging to Syria and Lebanon) in Israeli maps is common among believers of the concept of Eretz Yisrael—Greater Israel—a key part of ultra-nationalist Zionism that claims all of these lands belong to a Zionist state.

Earlier this year, Netanyahu's finance minister, Bezalel Smotrich, spoke from a podium adorned with a map that also included Palestine, Lebanon, and Syria as part of Greater Israel. In the same event, he said there was "no such thing as Palestinians."

The use of such maps by Israeli officials comes at a time when Netanyahu's ultra-nationalist government has taken steps that experts say amount to the "de jure annexation" of the occupied West Bank.

Netanyahu used the maps in an attempt to illustrate the increasing number of Arab countries normalizing relations with Israel under the Abraham Accords brokered by the administration of former U.S. President Donald Trump.

“There’s no question the Abraham Accords heralded the dawn of a new age of peace,” the Israeli prime minister said. “But I believe that we are at the cusp of an even more dramatic breakthrough, an historic peace between Israel and Saudi Arabia. Peace between Israel and Saudi Arabia will truly create a new Middle East.”

ritics have countered that peace between apartheid Israel and Arab dictatorships has come at the cost of advancing Palestinian rights. In the case of Morocco, the United States recognized the North African nation’s illegal annexation and brutal occupation of Western Sahara in exchange for normalization with Israel.

Netanyahu’s props on Friday reminded numerous observers of the time during his 2012 General Assembly speech when he used a cartoon drawing of a bomb to illustrate Iran’s progress on advancing a nuclear weapons program that both U.S. and Israeli intelligence agencies said did not exist.

    • demonquark@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      84
      arrow-down
      3
      ·
      1 year ago

      There’s basically one far right playbook. Did you really think Netanyahu would change tactics just because he happened to be a Jewish right winger.

      • Chetzemoka@kbin.social
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        25
        ·
        1 year ago

        There only being that one playbook is the exact reason why I have a patch on my backpack that reads: “Evil is boring”

      • esadatari@lemmy.world
        link
        fedilink
        English
        arrow-up
        76
        arrow-down
        6
        ·
        1 year ago

        i’ll spell it out really slow like for ya if it’ll help.

        israel’s treatment of the palestinian people is that of an ethnic cleansing.

        they are removing their heritage sites.

        flooding their farmlands during winter so they’re fucked in the spring.

        constantly boxing in all palestinians that live in any of the palestinian territories that still exist.

        shooting palestinian women, children

        shooting journalists and medics that choose to help or report on the situation.

        bulldozing their land and homes to make room for new israeli settlers that will happily steal that land from the palestinians.

        responding with disproportionate force after palestinians are goaded into defending themselves. one molotov should not equal days of missile strikes.

        they have consistently “accidentally” targeted school buildings and hospitals for missile strikes during disproportionate responses.

        basically all of these actions amount to ethnic cleansing, which is a facet of genocide.

        israel’s M.O. is to act like nazi lite, then when the world takes notice and outrage occurs, they back off. during that time, they lobby the US government and pull strings and make threats.

        and if you criticize israel at all for their behavior on the world stage? well then you’re just a fucking antisemite, and they’ll be quick to call it that.

        they spend some of the most money of any world government using social media teams to protect their country’s interests.

        you’re looking at smarter nazis with better PR and lots of money.

      • Javi_in_4k@lemm.ee
        link
        fedilink
        English
        arrow-up
        65
        arrow-down
        3
        ·
        1 year ago

        The part where they bulldoze homes, blockade shipments, steal land, and restrict rights. Want more?

          • chaogomu@kbin.social
            link
            fedilink
            arrow-up
            34
            arrow-down
            2
            ·
            1 year ago

            48 children killed by the IDF this year alone.

            About 200 adults have also been killed this year.

            Violence from Israeli settlers has displaced over 1000 Palestinians this year, attacks have mostly focused on burning fields and killing livestock, and sabotaging equipment.

      • protist@mander.xyz
        link
        fedilink
        English
        arrow-up
        43
        arrow-down
        3
        ·
        edit-2
        1 year ago

        Are we talking about “not accepting a country” or “bulldozing Palestinian homes to build Israeli homes?”

      • NoneOfUrBusiness@kbin.social
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        37
        arrow-down
        3
        ·
        1 year ago

        It’s easily arguable that Israeli settlement amount and the way the government basically encourages it amounts to ethnic cleansing by forcing Palestinians out of their homes. It’s actual Lebensraum shit.

          • spacecowboy@sh.itjust.works
            link
            fedilink
            English
            arrow-up
            15
            arrow-down
            2
            ·
            1 year ago

            Either you’re okay with being a piece of shit or your ignorant to the facts. Either way, you look like an idiot. That’s the egg on your face.

            • CookieJarObserver@sh.itjust.works
              link
              fedilink
              English
              arrow-up
              1
              arrow-down
              28
              ·
              1 year ago

              Im German and LGBT. I just don’t give a single fuck about people that want to genocide Jews and or LGBT people, wich means i absolutely do not give a fuck about “Palestine”

              • spacecowboy@sh.itjust.works
                link
                fedilink
                English
                arrow-up
                19
                arrow-down
                2
                ·
                1 year ago

                Yep every person in Palestine hates you because you’re gay.

                You can have compassion for people and still not like them. You’d think someone in your position would understand that. Nobody deserves oppression.

          • floofloof@lemmy.ca
            link
            fedilink
            English
            arrow-up
            13
            arrow-down
            1
            ·
            1 year ago

            Or you could try learning from the responses people give you, maybe even recognizing the new information they have given in response to your question. After all, asking a question invites answers.

              • Flambo@lemmy.world
                link
                fedilink
                English
                arrow-up
                12
                arrow-down
                1
                ·
                1 year ago

                Why the hell should i do that?

                Read any chapter of history, particularly in the last several hundred years, and you’ll find no end of answers to this question.

  • CALIGVLA@lemmy.dbzer0.com
    link
    fedilink
    English
    arrow-up
    87
    arrow-down
    7
    ·
    1 year ago

    Of all the things that the Jews have learned from their history, you’d think “genocide is bad” would be one of the first and most important ones…

  • filister@lemmy.world
    link
    fedilink
    English
    arrow-up
    55
    arrow-down
    4
    ·
    1 year ago

    And unfortunately the world is doing nothing to stop them achieving their goal. No sanctions, no political isolation, no international outcry.

    It just comes to prove how wicked international politics is and clearly showing the double standards there, where our allies are good no matter what they do. And believe me, if something like this was happening in Russia, China the reaction of the West would have been completely different. And no, I am not defending any of the sides for their wrongdoings, I am just triggered by the hypocrisy.

    • FuglyDuck@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      77
      arrow-down
      7
      ·
      1 year ago

      what’s hilarious is… you know how everybody would respond if somebody showed a map without Israel on the map… the accusations of antisemitism would be swift, angry and quite probably violent.

      • Silverseren@kbin.social
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        11
        arrow-down
        5
        ·
        1 year ago

        Also, as isn’t brought up as often as it should, Palestinians are also semitic peoples. So being against them is also antisemitism.

      • 🦄🦄🦄@feddit.de
        link
        fedilink
        English
        arrow-up
        18
        arrow-down
        17
        ·
        1 year ago

        The accusations would also be accurate. Just because Netanyahu is saying some batshit insane thing again doesn’t mean antisemetic fuckers get a pass.

            • BNE@lemmy.blahaj.zone
              link
              fedilink
              English
              arrow-up
              8
              arrow-down
              1
              ·
              1 year ago

              Again, ethnic cleansing and apartheid is not a cultural trait. Israeli =/= Jewish.

            • Adlach@lemmygrad.ml
              link
              fedilink
              English
              arrow-up
              6
              ·
              edit-2
              1 year ago

              Conflating Israel and Jewishness is antisemitic, especially when Israel is abusive to Jewish populations they don’t like, like the mizrahim and the Beta Israel.

          • UrbonMaximus
            link
            fedilink
            English
            arrow-up
            1
            ·
            1 year ago

            I see this said a lot and it always confuses me. Wouldn’t an independent Palestine also be an ethno state?

            • NoneOfUrBusiness@kbin.social
              link
              fedilink
              arrow-up
              2
              arrow-down
              2
              ·
              edit-2
              1 year ago

              Nope. Israeli law actively discriminates against non-Jews to the benefit of Jews, and the Israeli government government gives so much preferential treatment to Jews outside the law (mostly by taking away the rights of non-Jews) it’s not even funny. AFAIK neither of the two Palestinian states that currently exist do that. I mean they discriminate against Jews, but not to the benefit of any particular ethnicity.

              • UrbonMaximus
                link
                fedilink
                English
                arrow-up
                1
                ·
                1 year ago

                In an area full of ethnocracies, authoritarian regimes and dictatorships,I doubt that a free Palestinian state wouldn’t be one as well. After years of persecution from Lebanon, Syria, Israel, Jordan, Egypt… A free Palestinian state would most likely copy the Israeli model and make a refuge for all Palestinians of the world. I’m interested to hear why you think it wouldn’t be an ethno state.

                • NoneOfUrBusiness@kbin.social
                  link
                  fedilink
                  arrow-up
                  1
                  arrow-down
                  1
                  ·
                  1 year ago

                  In an area full of ethnocracies, authoritarian regimes and dictatorships

                  The area is full of authoritarian regimes, but ethnocracies? Where are those?

                  A free Palestinian state would most likely copy the Israeli model and make a refuge for all Palestinians of the world.

                  I mean the “free” part is pretty dubious but there are already two Palestinian states and it doesn’t seem they’re interested in going down that route. Also considering being Palestinian an ethnicity is already pretty dubious when the Palestinian identity evolved as a response to Zionism in the 20th century. The factors that led to Israel being in its current state simply don’t exist for Palestinians.

        • FuglyDuck@lemmy.world
          link
          fedilink
          English
          arrow-up
          10
          arrow-down
          2
          ·
          1 year ago

          I’m not saying they wouldn’t be. But… particularly among american evangelicals… the response is extremely disproportionate. for them, just because it’s israel… and they want to end the world (yeah. nutters think that the end times will only happen if Israel exists as a state…) netanyahu gets a free pass. in fact, if they see this, they’ll probably start accusing me of being antisemitic just for criticizing a secular head of state for being a prick.

  • Andy@slrpnk.net
    link
    fedilink
    English
    arrow-up
    34
    arrow-down
    2
    ·
    1 year ago

    This is really dark.

    I’m honestly kind of shocked, Because I’m convinced that the two-state solution is dead, and the only two remaining options are the one-state solution – Israel recognizes Palestinians as Israelis and affords them civil rights and political agency – or the ‘no-state’ solution – expulsion and ethnic cleansing of Palestinians from the territory.

    I know that Netanyahu isn’t alluding to the one state solution, so when he stops talking about a two-state solution it really makes it clear that he’s going all in on the other one.

  • Breezy@lemmy.world
    link
    fedilink
    English
    arrow-up
    30
    arrow-down
    4
    ·
    1 year ago

    I read a book called the olive grove when i was a teenager about the true struggles of a palestian family when isreal took over. Its such a sad and messed up story that spans three generations. Ever since reading it ive been pro palestine. For anyone who loves reading should give it a try.

  • Phoenixz@lemmy.ca
    link
    fedilink
    English
    arrow-up
    27
    arrow-down
    3
    ·
    1 year ago

    For a people who have been through multiple attempts of being genocided, the Israeli government sure does have a weird love for genocide.

  • RaivoKulli@sopuli.xyz
    link
    fedilink
    English
    arrow-up
    7
    ·
    1 year ago

    I’m more puzzled about Sudan. What are these maps about, what’s “New Middle East”? I looked up articles about the speech but they don’t really clarify the deal about Sudan

  • lorty@lemmy.ml
    link
    fedilink
    English
    arrow-up
    6
    ·
    1 year ago

    Guess they are tired of pretending their policies are different.

  • Squizzy@lemmy.world
    link
    fedilink
    English
    arrow-up
    17
    arrow-down
    15
    ·
    1 year ago

    Fuck Israel and it’s leadership, the people are complicit or actively supporting a genocidal regime. And fuck the US for their continued support in propping up this aggressive shit stirring nation

    • LaChaleurDeLaNuit@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      25
      arrow-down
      2
      ·
      edit-2
      1 year ago

      No they’re not. I’m Israeli and I hate this government that doesn’t represent me at all. This is the same as saying all iranians agree with Khomeini. Haven’t you seen the demonstrations going on everyday for like 6 months?

      • Squizzy@lemmy.world
        link
        fedilink
        English
        arrow-up
        3
        arrow-down
        3
        ·
        1 year ago

        Complicit or actively supporting. I’ve seen too many Israelis, members of the public canvassed on the street, in support of atrocities and how they talk about the Palestinians in general.

        I’m not going to assume every person in Israel is an aggressive bigot warmonger, but the people allowed for it to get this far. The leadership is corrupt and evil and represent you.

        It’s not a personal attack on you, it’s genuinely disheartening to see that there is support for the leadership among the people.

        • Adlach@lemmygrad.ml
          link
          fedilink
          English
          arrow-up
          5
          ·
          1 year ago

          While I agree with you, you must recognize this is also true of almost every nation. Native American rights remain a universally ignored issue in American discourse, for example.

          • Squizzy@lemmy.world
            link
            fedilink
            English
            arrow-up
            2
            arrow-down
            3
            ·
            1 year ago

            That is the definition of two wrongs not making it a right though. I get what you are saying though, it’s not a unique issue. But it is a current event, with recent roots and western approval. Living in the west this makes it more of an issue for me than other such cases and it being current makes it more important to me than the native American issue. Though the native American issue is important to me they are not hunted from their houses during the night…anymore.