( Middle East Monitor ) – The world beyond 7 October 2023 is not the same. It is a world that has finally seen beyond the decades-old narrative of a perpetually vulnerable Israel, whose actions were always justified by existential fear. The brutal atrocities committed by Israel in Gaza have inflamed world condemnations. Still, more importantly, they have torn asunder the foundations of this narrative that held Western powers hostage for generations. The collective trauma of 7 October was swiftly overtaken by the shocking spectacle of a no-holds-barred state perpetrating war crimes, ethnic cleansing, and even genocide.
The collapse of the old narrative
The Israeli narrative traditionally pivoted on moral high ground and strategic restraint. That image is now broken, buried, and forever finished. The most damning evidence for the prosecution in the Court of global opinion has come from the language used by Israeli leaders themselves.
The declaration of Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant on 9 October 2023, for a “complete siege, no electricity, no food, no water, no fuel,” with the dehumanising assertion “We are fighting human animals, and we are acting accordingly,” was indeed a statement of intent that shocked the conscience of the civilized world.
Such language, combined with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s invocation of the biblical command “Remember what Amalek has done to you,” has been cited by critics, including the submission by South Africa to the International Court of Justice, as evidence of genocidal intent. Several scholars have noted that this is unusually explicit language.
The sharpest attacks: Voices of the anti-establishment
The most powerful quotations come from voices that were once considered marginal, whose warnings have now been borne out by events. Criticisms that once could easily be dismissed as extreme now reverberate in the mainstream.
As Professor John Mearsheimer of the University of Chicago, the famous international relations theorist, said shortly after the Hamas attack, it was “Not Terribly Surprising.” Israel was already acting as an “apartheid state” destined to be seen, and condemned, by “growing numbers of people and more and more governments around the world.” His past analysis that Israel had been “unwittingly destroying its own future as a Jewish state” has now become a prophecy fulfilled in the eyes of a galvanized global public.
Norman Finkelstein, son of Holocaust survivors, for many years has been one of Israel’s most ferocious critics. His poignant 2008 commentary rings even truer now: “I don’t respect the crocodile tears-if you had any heart in you, you would be crying for the Palestinians.” The sheer scale of Palestinian suffering finally broke through to force the world to confront the reality to which Finkelstein referred: the narrative used to remember the Holocaust was weaponized to shield the oppressors from accountability.
As Scott Ritter, a former US intelligence officer, succinctly put it: “Americans have no romance left for Israel.” The blind allegiance that was a bedrock of US policy is dissolving, replaced by frustration and disgust over the crimes against humanity being committed with American weaponry and diplomatic cover.
The crack in the American and European walls
The institutional support from the US media, political class, and hitherto solid European allies is showing unprecedented fissures.
In the US Congress, the first significant crack came when centrist Democrat Senator Chris Murphy warned that Israel was committing “strategic and moral mistakes,” and that the civilian death toll would “ultimately going to provide permanent recruiting material to Hamas, and it will be a threat for years to come.” This is not a fringe position: It’s the dawning recognition of the American establishment that unwavering support for the IDF’s unrestrained conduct is actively undermining American security interests.
But the most blistering broadsides have been issued from the very heart of the European political elite: The former head of EU foreign policy, Josep Borrell, issued a scathing salvo, accusing the government of Israel of “carrying out the largest ethnic cleansing operation since the end of the Second World War in order to create a splendid holiday destination.” He added, “Seldom have I heard the leader of a state so clearly outline a plan that fits the legal definition of genocide.” This is, quite frankly, a political atomic bomb—a senior European diplomat, not a Palestinian advocate, using the language of genocide and ethnic cleansing.
Meanwhile, a Guardian investigation revealed Israel’s efforts at “Spying, hacking, and intimidation” against the ICC prosecutor, Karim Khan. Further, a leading human rights lawyer described an Israeli government plan to create a vast holding area for Palestinians as a “blueprint for crimes against humanity,” which would create a transit camp for deportation, something that is “nothing less than that.” Juxtaposed against a government plan for forced displacement is covert espionage against the ICC. It exposes the Netanyahu regime not as a victim of international bias but as an aggressive actor committed to subverting international law.
Perhaps the political shift was best encapsulated by economist Jeffrey Sachs of Columbia University, who bluntly said, “The overwhelming will of the world is for a state of Palestine now… I want it to be imposed on Israel, pure and simple.” As he warned, “Friends do not let friends commit crimes against humanity, much less provide them with the finances and arms to do so,” it would appear Washington’s unconditional support is now seen as complicity in global crime.
The decline of AIPAC and fear
The fear of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, or AIPAC, is demonstrably waning. For decades, the Israel lobby was able to end political careers for even minor deviations from the pro-Israel line. This calculus is changing. The war in Gaza “accelerated” a new courage among US politicians and grassroots movements now “intent on proving that being pro-Palestinian” does not mean political suicide. The moral imperative of opposing genocide is overcoming the political fear of being targeted by the lobby. The traditional power of AIPAC is giving way to the moral power of an outraged global public.
Photo by Leonardo Basso on Unsplash
The new reality
October 7, 2023, was a tragic day for Israel, one that led to an overreaction that has totally delegitimized the state in the court of global opinion. It did not garner more security or sympathy for Israel, but only provided a pretext for an operation that laid bare for the whole world to see the occupation’s essential brutality.
The Israeli narrative was not only damaged but annihilated by the actions of its own leaders. And the world is witness to the moral fallout, siding with the oppressed. The road to a future wherein Israel can know peace and security again, a legitimate goal, lies no longer in military dominance or manipulative narratives but in the hard, politically painful work of justice for Palestinians . . .
The views expressed in this article belong to the author and do not necessarily reflect the editorial policy of Middle East Monitor or Informed Comment.
Unless otherwise stated in the article above, this work by Middle East Monitor is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License. Final sentence excised per IC editorial standards.
© 2025 All Rights Reserved