Yair Rosenberg

The Corrupt Bargain Behind Gaza’s Catastrophe Israel’s far right wants to take over Gaza. Netanyahu wants to stay in power.

"After October 7, Israel’s partners may have thought they were interfacing with a typical—if deeply conservative—Israeli government. Now they actually seem to be dealing with a Smotrich/Ben-Gvir government in a Netanyahu-shaped trench coat."

There were once multiple sources of pressure, both in Israel and outside it, restraining Netanyahu on humanitarian aid and forced displacement of Gazans. They are all gone—and Trump is on the other side. www.theatlantic.com/internationa...

The Corrupt Bargain Behind Gaza’s Catastrophe Israel’s far right wants to take over Gaza. Netanyahu wants to stay in power.

www.theatlantic.com/internationa...

The Corrupt Bargain Behind Gaza’s Catastrophe Israel’s far right wants to take over Gaza. Netanyahu wants to stay in power.

Israel's far right wants to conquer and settle Gaza, expelling any Palestinians in the way. Benjamin Netanyahu wants to stay in power. I wrote about the corrupt political bargain that is prolonging Gaza's war and driving its hunger crisis, and all the decisions that led here. Gift link:

My body of work, in seven words

Remember the seven social media commandments—only YOU can prevent dumbed-down discourse!
www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archiv...

"Can't believe you only noticed this now" is usually code for "I have not read your work and couldn't be bothered to Google, and so invented a fictional version of you to be mad at." To be fair, Google is pretty useless now. But mischaracterizing the work of someone one hasn't read is a choice!

Yes, I think they hoped Hezbollah and other Iranian-backed forces would join in, in full force. (Kind of like the Bibi plan for attacking Iran vis-a-vis America, ironically.) There is some material from Gaza that suggests as much, though it's always tricky to sift through the leaks and reports.

The Worst-Kept Secret of the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict Trump turned a far-right fantasy—ethnic cleansing in Gaza—into U.S. policy. He needs to reject it.

www.theatlantic.com/internationa...

The Corrupt Bargain Behind Gaza’s Catastrophe Israel’s far right wants to take over Gaza. Netanyahu wants to stay in power.

"After October 7, Israel’s partners may have thought they were interfacing with a typical—if deeply conservative—Israeli government. Now they actually seem to be dealing with a Smotrich/Ben-Gvir government in a Netanyahu-shaped trench coat."

There were once multiple sources of pressure, both in Israel and outside it, restraining Netanyahu on humanitarian aid and forced displacement of Gazans. They are all gone—and Trump is on the other side. www.theatlantic.com/internationa...

The Corrupt Bargain Behind Gaza’s Catastrophe Israel’s far right wants to take over Gaza. Netanyahu wants to stay in power.

Israel's far right wants to conquer and settle Gaza, expelling any Palestinians in the way. Benjamin Netanyahu wants to stay in power. I wrote about the corrupt political bargain that is prolonging Gaza's war and driving its hunger crisis, and all the decisions that led here. Gift link:

The Worst-Kept Secret of the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict Trump turned a far-right fantasy—ethnic cleansing in Gaza—into U.S. policy. He needs to reject it.

“But if the administration wants more than another temporary cease-fire that will inevitably collapse, it needs to stop feeding the Israeli right’s dream of conquest—in Gaza, but also the West Bank.”
@yair-rosenberg.bsky.social

www.theatlantic.com/internationa...

My past self had no idea where this was going

It takes seconds to Google whether a journalist has written about a topic before and find out whether they're just tackling this issue now or you're just discovering their writing for the first time. If you choose not to read my work before commenting on it, I choose not read your posts! Seems fair.

The Worst-Kept Secret of the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict Trump turned a far-right fantasy—ethnic cleansing in Gaza—into U.S. policy. He needs to reject it.

My latest: Trump opened the door to ethnic cleansing in Gaza. He needs to close it and stop feeding the Israeli right's dark fantasies of conquest—both in Gaza and the West Bank—or he will never achieve the peace he claims to want. Please read the whole thing. Gift link:

My past self had no idea where this was going

Yes, but I do have an author page on the site where I work! Very easy to find. One can also search Bluesky or other social media platforms. But it's fine if one doesn't! The problem is rather commenting on the work one hasn't actually read. No one's forcing anyone to do that.

It takes seconds to Google whether a journalist has written about a topic before and find out whether they're just tackling this issue now or you're just discovering their writing for the first time. If you choose not to read my work before commenting on it, I choose not read your posts! Seems fair.

The Worst-Kept Secret of the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict Trump turned a far-right fantasy—ethnic cleansing in Gaza—into U.S. policy. He needs to reject it.

"If the administration wants more than another temporary ceasefire that inevitably collapses, it needs to stop feeding the Israeli right’s dream of conquest—in Gaza, but also the West Bank. It must make clear that neither nation is going anywhere and confine the absolutist aspirations it unleashed."

Polls show that a clear majority of Israelis oppose the resettlement and annexation of Gaza. Even some Israelis who dream of one day ruling the entire land balk in practice at the notion of maintaining a perpetual military occupation against a Hamas insurgency. But Israel’s prime minister is beholden to the minority demanding exactly that. Netanyahu’s fragile coalition received just 48.4 percent of the vote in Israel’s last election, and relies on explicitly anti-Arab far-right factions to remain in power while Netanyahu is on trial for corruption. President Joe Biden understood this dynamic, and his administration undertook a public and private pressure campaign to prevent Netanyahu from acceding to his hard-right allies.

“We have been clear, consistent, and unequivocal that Gaza is Palestinian land and will remain Palestinian land,” the State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said in a January 2024 statement, publicly rebuking two Netanyahu ministers for their “inflammatory and irresponsible” call to encourage “migration” from Gaza to make way for Jewish settlement. Secretary of State Antony Blinken flew to the region and assured America’s Arab allies that it opposed forced displacement. “Palestinian civilians must be able to return home as soon as conditions allow,” he said at a press conference in Doha, Qatar. “They cannot, they must not, be pressed to leave Gaza.” Blinken then traveled to Israel, where he apparently delivered the same message to Netanyahu. The next day, the Israeli leader posted a video in which he declared, “Israel has no intention of permanently occupying Gaza or displacing its civilian population.” A member of Netanyahu’s party told the press that the prime minister’s stance had shifted because of American pressure. For the moment, maximalism had been shoved back into the box.

Something many do not know: The Biden administration engaged in a public and private pressure campaign to compel Netanyahu to reject the ethnic cleansing calls of his far-right allies. It worked. Then Biden lost, the pressure stopped and Trump reversed everything.
www.theatlantic.com/internationa...

discussed in the piece -- let me know if the link doesn't get you past the paywall

The Worst-Kept Secret of the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict Trump turned a far-right fantasy—ethnic cleansing in Gaza—into U.S. policy. He needs to reject it.

My latest: Trump opened the door to ethnic cleansing in Gaza. He needs to close it and stop feeding the Israeli right's dark fantasies of conquest—both in Gaza and the West Bank—or he will never achieve the peace he claims to want. Please read the whole thing. Gift link:

It is a reasonable question. I discuss the conflicting signals in the piece! Link is free.

Trump World’s Wizard of Oz Problem Tucker Carlson and Steve Bannon don’t speak for Trump or his base. So why do people think they do?

As I wrote earlier: "There is Bannonism and Tuckerism, and perhaps, in a quiet corner of the Naval Observatory that has been repeatedly swept for bugs to ensure that the boss isn’t listening, J. D. Vance–ism. But there is no Trumpism without Trump."

People like Tucker, Bannon, and their online fellow travelers have made a concerted effort to pretend they represent and wield influence over the MAGA movement. As Ukraine, Iran, and many other issues show, they don't. The question is when people stop falling for the con.

"Trumpism" is whatever Trump says it is, part 5427.

Haha, no worries. We obviously agree on the recess point here!

C'mon, tell me you did not read the article without telling me you did not read the article! I use gift links, so there's really no reason for this to happen.

The Wheels are Falling Off Netanyahu’s Government The Israeli leader has been alienating his allies and is spiraling toward early elections.

My latest: The wheels are falling off Netanyahu's government. Outside Israel, Bibi appears ascendant. But inside, the reality could not be more different. His government just lost two parties and now effectively controls just 50 of the Knesset's 120 seats and is careening toward collapse. Gift link: