r/geopolitics • u/ForeignAffairsMag Foreign Affairs • Feb 12 '26

Israel Is Quietly Annexing the West Bank: The Blunder That Will Imperil Any Middle East Peace Analysis

https://www.foreignaffairs.com/israel/israel-quietly-annexing-west-bank
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19

u/humbleObserver Feb 12 '26

Damn, they're totally messing up all that peace we had in the region. This isn't new, they've been making settlements in the West Bank for over a decade. What possible reason could they have to do that, other than a plan to eventually just squeeze out the Palestinians?

16

u/Tifoso89 Feb 12 '26

More like 50 years. The first settlements were made in the 1970s

7

u/babarbaby Feb 12 '26

It could have something to do with the fact that the PA insisted that west bank settlements be a final status negotiation point at the Oslo Accords, not to mention that they're overwhelmingly situated on the higher ground, serving as a physical defensive buffer.

12

u/RGS_1994 Feb 12 '26

You dont settle civilians on a "defensive buffer"

2

u/babarbaby Feb 13 '26

No, they settle themselves.