Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu recently said in an interview that he feels “very” attached to the idea of a “Greater Israel.” This crackpot “vision” is for Israel to conquer not only historic Palestine, but parts of Egypt and Saudi Arabia, and parts or all of Jordan, Lebanon and Syria.

This used to be a conspiracy theory. But it isn’t anymore. It is out in the open for the world to see. And he isn’t alone in sharing this “vision.” Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich has also peddled the idea of a “Greater Israel”, along with many other far-right Israelis.

This past week, Netanyahu announced his plans to take over all of Gaza, something that Israel had already done in practice through a complete blockade of the enclave in 2007. But the world’s biggest concentration camp has been almost completely razed to dust by continuous Israeli bombardment over the last two years. And Israel intends to corral its remaining population into smaller and more squalid camps, for them to await deportation or worse.

In the occupied West Bank, the plan to annex the remaining Palestinian territories is already underway. In fact, pogroms, harassment, vandalism and murders of unarmed Palestinians committed by Israeli settlers is a daily occurrence, and all with the protection of the IDF.

So, it is clear that the words of Netanyahu and other Israeli leaders should be taken seriously. They have boldly announced their genocidal intent for two years. Israel has bombed Lebanon and Syria throughout that time, even as it carries out a genocide in Gaza. Now they are telling us what the potential next step will be. Whether or not they can pull it off isn’t the point. If it is implemented, it is the instability and untold suffering for millions of people in the region that should concern us.

It should not be surprising if all of this reminds us of the plans of another regime, in another country, on another continent, in another time… 1939. And we all know what happened when that “vision” was made into a reality.

Kenn Orfanos, August 2025