As Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s new military plan for Gaza faces growing criticism abroad, opposition is also building in Israel, with hostage families calling for a nationwide shutdown on Sunday. But in the Israeli settlement of Itamar, in the occupied West Bank, support for the war remains firm.
From Jerusalem, Route 60 heads north through a landscape that tells the story of more than half a century of occupation of the West Bank – with its Israeli military presence and smooth roads for Israeli settlers, dotted with checkpoints on the roads serving Palestinian localities.
The hills are gradually being covered with "outposts" – prefabricated structures set up on the outskirts of Israeli settlements to gradually expand their boundaries.
While settlements are recognised by the Israeli government, outposts are illegal under Israeli law. Both the settlements and the outposts are illegal under international law.
Arriving at a yellow metal barrier, we are in Itamar, where small houses with light-coloured walls line the streets that wind their way along the hillside.
In Itamar, as in most Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank, the majority of residents identify with the religious nationalist movement – and in particular with the Religious Zionist Party of Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, whose portrait is seen on posters lining the roads in the region.
Residents refer to it as Judea and Samaria, the biblical name for this region and the one used for the West Bank by Israeli authorities. According to these settlers, this land belongs to Israel, even though United Nations resolutions say otherwise.
France leads global appeal to recognise Palestinian state after UN talks
'Reaching an agreement won't work'
In recent days, the streets of Israel have echoed with cries of anger over the government's plan to take control of densely populated areas of the Gaza Strip.
The Israeli military said on Wednesday it had approved the framework for a new offensive in Gaza, as Hamas condemned what it called "aggressive" Israeli ground incursions in Gaza City. The approval for the expanded offensive comes days after Israel’s security cabinet called for the seizure of Gaza’s largest city.
The families of the remaining 50 hostages still being held by Hamas in Gaza – 22 of whom are currently presumed to be alive – have called for a nationwide general strike on Sunday, in protest at the expansion of the Gaza offensive.
They are urging Israelis not to go to work that day, in order to pressurise the government into prioritising the rescue of the hostages. "We are shutting down the country to save the soldiers and the hostages," they said in a statement.
But there is no such dissent in Itamar, and the desire to continue the war prevails.
"What happened on 7 October [2023] must not happen again," explains Yaacov Cohen, a rabbi and religious teacher who has lived in Itamar for four decades.
"That is the most important thing, more important than the fate of our unfortunate hostages. On the other side, we have the terrorists of Hamas, who have no faith and no law. Stopping the war and reaching an agreement will not work."
This rhetoric highlights a profound division within Israeli society, contrasting sharply with the slogans seen at weekly rallies, from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, calling for an end to the war to allow for the release of the hostages.
Hunger, disease and no escape: Gaza aid worker’s account of life under siege
Netanyahu insists the aim of his plan is to "put an end to Hamas". Ultra-nationalist ministers Smotrich and Itamar Ben Gvir say this plan is insufficient to achieve that.
"I agree with Bezalel Smotrich," says Moshe Goldschmidt, a former mayor of the Itamar settlement, who believes that his country is still exercising too much restraint in its war on Gaza, particularly the army.
"Some officers exercise command with old ideas: fearing international pressure, being cautious," he says. "But there is a new mindset in Israel. We will no longer be sheep going to the slaughterhouse. We must be strong, fight for good, defeat evil and when that is done, there will be peace and the world will be a much better place."
Goldschmidt categorically rejects the idea that there is a genocide taking place in the Gaza Strip, even though Israeli human rights organisations have recently joined the list of NGOs now using this term.
Macron warns Israel that Gaza occupation plan risks ‘war without end’
Recognition of the State of Palestine
On Monday, Australia became the latest country to announce that it would recognise the State of Palestine – joining France, the United Kingdom and Canada, among others.
While this diplomatic gesture will have no impact on the ground, the settlers of Itamar are outraged.
"Gaza was a sample of a Palestinian state, with Hamas at its head," says Goldschmidt. "This is what happens when you create a Palestinian state. Their goal is to eliminate Israel. There is no difference between Hamas and Mahmoud Abbas's Palestinian Authority, if you listen to them – they have the same mindset, that of radical Islam."
Leaders who are preparing to recognise a Palestinian state "should be ashamed", he added.
In Itamar, the settlers are convinced that Western countries are beholden to the Muslim communities living in them, and that this explains why they are recognising Palestinian statehood.
As for Israel's growing isolation on the world stage: "yes, it's a problem," admits Cohen. "But we have the Americans with us, which helps a lot."
This article was adapted from the original version in French by RFI's correspondent in Itamar.
