Israel is gearing up for an election at the end of October. And, with the Likud party of the prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, trailing in the polls, his government is pushing through measures which aim to dramatically expand Israeli control over Palestinian land on the West Bank and Gaza Strip.

The October 27 poll will be the first since Hamas’s October 2023 attack, the bloodiest assault on Israel since its creation, and the devastating war on Gaza that followed. It appears that with the failure of the war in Iran to achieve its strategic objectives, and amid continuing instability in Lebanon, Netanyahu’s government believe that territorial expansion will be one of its strongest electoral assets.

The expansion of settlements in the West Bank and the steady reduction of Palestinian-controlled territory in Gaza are not new developments. But the recent announcement by the defence minister, Israel Katz, of plans to establish three military-community outposts in northern Gaza marks a significant escalation. Finance minister Bezalel Smotrich, meanwhile, recently announced 1.3 billion shekel (£318m) in funding for dozens of new Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank.

Such proposals are likely to resonate with Israel’s increasingly right-wing electorate. But they may also reflect a broader effort to consolidate territorial gains before a possible change in political leadership.

The focus of international attention has shifted since the end of February towards Iran and Lebanon. So, with less scrutiny of developments in Palestinian territories, the government appears determined, in the........

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