The rise of Kahanism in Israel and its aftermath

The rise of the "Kahanite" movement, led by Itamar Ben Gvir, as an ideological movement and a major political force in Israel, carries with it potential energy to make the results of the early elections that will be held next week a prelude to opening a new page in the conflict with the Palestinian people, and the beginning of a path that leads to a transformation in Tel Aviv relations. Regional and international, and the reformulation of the political system in the Zionist entity.

Netanyahu is aware that his escape from prison if convicted of the three charges against him in the corruption cases in which he is being tried, namely bribery, fraud and breach of trust, depends on his forming a coalition that includes parties that are willing to assist him in enacting a law exempting the prime minister, ministers and representatives from prosecution if they practice their actions, which is called "French law"

Frequent opinion polls indicate that the elections will crown the coalition that brings together the "Kahanism" and the "Religious Zionism" movement led by "Betzal Smurtech" as the third largest party in the Knesset, after the "Likud" parties led by opposition leader Benjamin Netanyahu, and "Yesh Atid" led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The government is Yair Lapid.

Before delving into the positions and premises of "Kahanism" and the various repercussions of its rise, it is important to clarify that it is not only the size of this movement's presence in the upcoming parliament that will give it a great influence on the decision-making circle in Tel Aviv;

In fact, the criminal files and corruption cases that Netanyahu is currently on trial will give Ben Gvir the opportunity to be the kingmaker after the upcoming elections.

Netanyahu is aware that his escape from prison if convicted of the three charges brought against him in the corruption cases in which he is being tried, namely: receiving bribery, fraud and breach of trust, depends on his forming a coalition of parties that are willing to assist him in enacting a law exempting the prime minister, ministers and representatives from prosecution if they practice their actions, which is called "French law".

With the exception of the Likud party led by Netanyahu and the "United Nations Judaism" and "Shas" parties, which represent the ultra-Orthodox movement, and the alliance of "Kahanism" and "Religious Zionism", there is no party in Israel ready to enact such a law.

This is what prompted Netanyahu to confirm permanently that he is committed to forming a government coalition only with the participation of the Likud, the Haredi parties, and the Kahanism, Zionism and religious alliance.

Because some opinion polls give the pro-Netanyahu coalition of parties 61 seats (which represents an absolute majority), this means that the possibility that Kahanism will be a major component of the next Israeli government is realistic.

This indicates that its ideological premises and political stances will affect Israel's orientations and policies, both externally and internally.

The creedal system to which the "Kahanism" belongs played a major role in determining the nature of the conditions set by Ben Gvir for his participation in any government formed by Netanyahu after the elections.

Kahanism belongs to a Jewish religious current that has emerged strongly in the last decade, which Hebrew literature calls the “Hardali” movement, which combines the doctrinal extremism of the Haredi movement with the nationalist extremism of the religious Zionist movement.

Bin Ghafir's personal biography indicates the depth of his commitment to this deeply extremist "national" religious approach.

Since the age of sixteen, the Public Prosecution has charged him with 53 charges, including: practicing and inciting violence, possessing propaganda materials for a terrorist organization and supporting a terrorist organization.

When reviewing the list of conditions that Ben Gvir, who was born to a family that immigrated from Iraq, announced during the election campaign that he will participate in the next government on the basis of which, it becomes clear that his success in passing, even some, will cause an unprecedented shift in the direction of the conflict with the Palestinian people.

The conditions of Ben Gvir in general aim to secure the system of Jewish hegemony over the historical land of Palestine, to maintain it and to neutralize anyone who threatens its contiguity or delegitimizes it.

Ben Gvir pledged to enact a law for the first time to expel all those who "enemy" and "incite" Israel.

During his election campaign, he published a video showing him storming a civilian plane empty of passengers, where he identified a number of seats in the front, stressing that they will be reserved for Arab MKs in the Knesset when they will be expelled to Europe after the enactment of the law.

Ben Gvir committed himself to enacting a law that legislates the imposition of the death penalty on Palestinian resistance fighters who participate in operations targeting settlers and occupying soldiers;

And bringing about a radical change to the firing orders in force in the West Bank, so that officers and soldiers are given absolute freedom to target whatever they consider a source of danger.

In addition, Ben Gvir promised to pass a law granting immunity to army and police officers and soldiers who kill or injure Palestinians while performing their military and security duties.

In addition, he affirmed that he will use his weight in the government to adopt a more repressive policy towards the Palestinian prisoners in the occupation prisons and deprive them of all the rights that they acquired with great sacrifices.

While reflecting a tendency to dismantle the political structures that could threaten in the future the Jewish hegemonic system, Ben Gvir announced last week that he would work to cancel the Oslo Accords, dissolve the Palestinian Authority, lift any restrictions on settlement activities in the West Bank and Jerusalem, and confront Palestinian construction.

Undoubtedly, one of the most extreme directions of Ben Gvir is related to the position on Al-Aqsa Mosque, where he committed to stopping what he called "racial discrimination against Jews" in the mosque.

Ben Gvir, who lives in the settlement enclave in the city of Hebron, is concerned with transferring the idea of ​​temporal and spatial sharing between Muslims and Jews that the occupation imposed in the Ibrahimi Mosque to Al-Aqsa Mosque.

The Haradal movement, to which Ben Gvir belongs, adopts the most extreme interpretation of the idea of ​​Jewish salvation;

Where the references of this current see that the achievement of salvation and the descent of the awaited Savior who will make the Jews leaders of the world depends on building the Temple on the ruins of Al-Aqsa Mosque, and the subsequent outbreak of the “Gog and Magog” war.

With regard to the Palestinians of the interior, Ben Gvir presents a simple and clear vision for dealing with them, which requires stripping the Israeli "citizenship right" from every person who does not recognize Israel as a Jewish state and threatens its Jewish character.

The alliance of Kahanism and religious Zionism professes its determination to bring about a major transformation of the structure of the political and legal system in Israel in a way that practically turns Israel into a "Shari'a State".

Smurtech, a colleague of Ben Gvir, announced that he would work to replace the provisions of Jewish law in place of the positive law currently in force.

Several transformations played an important role in the rise of Kahanism, on top of which was the desire of large segments of the Jewish public to resolve the conflict with the Palestinian people.

There is great disappointment in this public with the results of the policies adopted by the Israeli governments in the last two decades, which resulted in the outbreak of four wars and dozens of rounds of escalation with the resistance in the Gaza Strip, as well as the explosion of public outbursts and waves of resistance operations in the West Bank that affected the level of personal security of the Israelis.

Although international and legal institutions accused Israel of committing war crimes against the Palestinians, Ben Gvir convinced many Jews that he was able, through the positions referred to above, to resolve the conflict.

And the Israeli writer, Myron Rapoport, points out in an article he recently published in the Siha Makumet website that Ben Gvir's ideas and premises are adopted by important circles in the army and the security establishment.

Undoubtedly, Kahane's participation will affect Israel's international relations, particularly with the United States;

The leader of the Democratic majority in the Senate, Robert Menendez, warned Netanyahu that Washington's relations with Tel Aviv would be negatively affected if Ben Gvir included any government he could form after the elections.

But Kahane's participation in the government and Ben Gvir's ability to fulfill some of his pledges will not necessarily bring good news for Israel.

It is true that this development will make Israel more arrogant and aggressive in its dealings with the Palestinian people;

But at the same time, it will lead to the outbreak of an existential war with the Palestinian people and the outbreak of an open confrontation in the arenas of Gaza, the West Bank and Palestine inside.

If, since 1948, Israel has not been able to resolve the confrontation against the Palestinian people and eradicate their resistance, it will not be able to achieve this goal precisely at a time when the spirit of resistance is raging.

Moreover, Israel's application of the Kahanism premise means the termination of the Palestinian Authority and the liquidation of its existence, which opens the way for Israel to bear responsibility for the consequences of its direct occupation of the West Bank and Gaza before the international community.

In addition, this transformation will provide conditions that will allow the unification of the Palestinian ranks without the need for endless attempts that failed to achieve national reconciliation and end the division.

If the rise of Kahanism increases the chances of Israel adopting policies aimed at Judaizing Al-Aqsa, this will at the same time increase the chances of mass reactions outside the borders of Palestine that will embarrass the Arab regimes that are linked to Israel through “peace” or normalization agreements.

Right-wing Israeli MP Itamar Ben Gvir tours Mahane Yehuda market ahead of the Israeli elections in Jerusalem in September 2022 (Reuters)

Israel's relationship with Jordan will be most affected by its responsibility as the guardian of the holy sites.

The rise of Kahanism may affect even the regimes' most enthusiastic orientations for normalization with Israel.

Yesterday, Wednesday, the Walla website revealed that UAE Foreign Minister Abdullah bin Zayed expressed his "great" concern in a meeting with Netanyahu during his recent visit to Israel, about the formation of a government headed by him, in which "extremist parties" participate, in reference to Kahanism.

Undoubtedly, Kahane's participation will affect Israel's international relations, particularly with the United States;

Where the leader of the Democratic majority in the Senate, Robert Menendez, warned Netanyahu that Washington's relations with Tel Aviv would be negatively affected if Ben Gvir included any government that he could form after the elections.

The irony is that Israeli society, which shows increasing support for Kahanism and its premises, falls into two clear contradictions.

On the one hand, the Kahanite orientations force Israel to indulge in continuous military activities;

On the other hand, many indicators indicate a significant decline in the willingness of Israeli society to pay the human cost of the war effort.

In a study recently published by the “Jerusalem Institute for Strategy and Security,” the Israeli researcher, Pina Shoker, demonstrated that the awareness of society’s lack of readiness to bear the deaths and the fear of the erosion of its steadfastness during wars and military confrontations has become one of the most important considerations that guide decision-making circles in Israel in everything related to war decisions.

In short, the rise of Kahanism and its consequences will not only expose Israel and show the madness of the party components that lead it;

It will also reveal more manifestations of Israeli weakness.