The dramatic and swift fall of President Bashar Al-Assad of Syria has all but delinked Iran from its proxy, Hezbollah, in Lebanon, since Syria was Iran's conduit to Hezbollah.
The ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon has all but delinked Hezbollah, weakened both militarily and politically in Lebanon, from a besieged war-ravaged Gaza. Iran's wings have been severely clipped and the so-called axis of resistance is disintegrating. The regional power equations have been redrawn. Hamas is on its last legs in Gaza.
With prospects for a Gaza ceasefire brightening, what Israel plans to do with its reassertion of regional dominance is crucial to the future of West Asia's peace and security. While their focus will now turn to effect regime change in Iran and how Gaza can be "secured" for Israel, Israeli activities in the occupied West Bank will be the litmus test for what is in store for the future of West Asia.
West Bank is the prize that Israel wants. Dominating Gaza is necessary to make sure that it stops being a launchpad to threaten Israeli security. But West Bank annexation is necessary to complete the dream of Eretz Israel. Israeli finance minister Bezalel Smotrich, an ultra-right political partner in Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government, has already declared 2025 as the year of Israeli sovereignty over Judea and Samaria - the biblical name for West Bank, after ancient Israeli kingdoms.
Israel wants to annex it, in effect annexing occupied territory and erasing the 1967 borders. We have already seen that the "New Middle East" map presented to the United Nations (UN) General Assembly (UNGA) by Netanyahu had no West Bank or Gaza. What was earlier Hamas's slogan - from the river to the sea - has now become Israel's rallying cry.
هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة December 19, 2024 من Hindustan Times Mumbai.
ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 9,000 مجلة وصحيفة.
بالفعل مشترك ? تسجيل الدخول
هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة December 19, 2024 من Hindustan Times Mumbai.
ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 9,000 مجلة وصحيفة.
بالفعل مشترك? تسجيل الدخول
Shami set for ODI return, Bumrah yet to recover
Australia have made only three changes to their 2023 ODI World Cup-winning squad for the upcoming Champions Trophy, two of them forced due to retirement and injury.
Television is OTT - over the top, subtlety may not work, feels Hina
Actor Hina Khan who recently made her first onscreen appearance since her cancer diagnosis and treatment with new web show Griha Laxmi. Days after its release, the actor reflects on the difference between TV and OTT.
Biden Grants Clemency to at Least 2,500 People
President Joe Biden on Friday commuted the sentences of nearly 2,500 people convicted of non-violent drug offenses in what the White House called the largest single-day act of clemency in US history.
China's growth target met, but many feel worse off
China's economy grew 5% last year, matching the government's target, but in a lopsided fashion, with many people complaining of worsening living standards as Beijing struggles to transfer its industrial and export gains to consumers.
Side-stepping NEET issues
The refusal to shift the entrance test to online mode is baffling, considering the crisis last year
28 birds die of H5N1 in Raj since Jan
To mitigate the risk of bird flu spreading to humans, local authorities have restricted access to areas where the birds were found
IMF Keeps India's GDP Growth Outlook at 6.5%
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has maintained its India growth forecast unchanged at 6.5% for FY25 and FY26, in an update to its World Economic Outlook released on Friday.
I am your partner, and I am a robot
BENEATH THE APPEAL OF AI COMPANIONS LIES A SOBERING TRUTH: THEY ARE, AT THEIR CORE, NOTHING MORE THAN CODE
8-Year Jail for Indian National for Attempting to Attack White House
Indian national Sai Varshith Kandula, 20, on Thursday was sentenced to eight years for an attempted attack on the White House with a rented truck on May 22, 2023.
'OTT gives you the time to practice and hone your skills'
Actor Dino Morea started his acting journey on the big screen, but it's been a decade and a half since he last did a lead or starring role in a Hindi film.
