{"id":29572,"date":"2026-02-21T05:29:12","date_gmt":"2026-02-21T05:29:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/gsrra.com\/?p=29572"},"modified":"2026-02-21T05:29:56","modified_gmt":"2026-02-21T05:29:56","slug":"29572","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gsrra.com\/?p=29572","title":{"rendered":"Global pressure does little to stop Israel\u2019s anti-Palestinian policies"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Many Israelis see international condemnation as evidence of anti-Semitism, rather than a verdict on their government\u2019s actions.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Israeli left-wing demonstrators hold banners during a protest against the arms industry at an international arms and security fair in Tel Aviv on February 17, 2026. Elements of the Israeli left continue to protest their country’s policies towards Palestinians, but they remain in the minority [Jack Guez\/AFP]<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

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Defying a chorus of global condemnation<\/a> and international law, Israel nevertheless proceeded earlier this month with the de facto annexation of the West Bank, home to more than three million Palestinians and a territory it has illegally occupied since 1967.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The international criticism that met the announcement was hardly new. Over the two years of its genocide in Gaza, Israel has set itself on course to become, in the words of some of its own lawmakers, a \u201cpariah state\u201d. Its prime minister and former defence minister are wanted for war crimes by the International Criminal Court, while global revulsion over its actions in Gaza has pushed the boycott<\/a> of Israeli goods to the forefront of consumers\u2019 minds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Four countries \u2013 Spain, Slovenia, the Netherlands, and the Republic of Ireland \u2013 are refusing<\/a> to take part in the popular song competition Eurovision in protest at Israel\u2019s presence. A global campaign is also under way to suspend Israel from both European UEFA and international FIFA football competitions, while South Africa\u2019s case<\/a> accusing Israel of genocide in the International Court of Justice is ongoing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But in Israel, this international isolation \u2013 and the killing of more than 72,000 Palestinians \u2013 is not significantly changing opinions on how the country should behave. In fact, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu still has a strong chance of winning elections set to be held this year, and much of the opposition towards him comes from his domestic policies, rather than disagreement over how he has treated Palestinians, which many remain indifferent to.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cMost people don\u2019t even know we\u2019ve largely annexed the West Bank,\u201d said Orly Noy, the editor of the Hebrew-language news site Local Call. \u201cIt just isn\u2019t reported that way.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThey may be aware that some of the rules of governance have changed, but they probably won\u2019t know that it\u2019s been de facto annexed until there\u2019s an international response that affects them, such as Eurovision,\u201d she said, noting that the withdrawal of the four nations in objection to Israel\u2019s genocide has been framed in Israel as being motivated primarily by anti-Semitism.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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