The spectacle of humiliation orchestrated by Israel’s Minister of National Security, Itamar Ben-Gvir, was the moment when the mask of the “only democracy in the Middle East” finally morphed into the snarl of fascist thuggery.
Muhammad Hamid ad-Din
Minister of National Security Itamar Ben-Gvir — a man with the label “terrorist” in his file from an Israeli court years ago — climbed onto the deck of a seized vessel to kick the global conscience in the teeth. He posts a video of bound activists on their knees, with the caption: “This is how we greet supporters of terrorism. Welcome to Israel.”
But don’t make the mistake of thinking Ben-Gvir is just a crazy guy who “got carried away.” He is Prime Minister Netanyahu’s perfect fall guy and a mirror reflecting the true face of the policies the U.S. wraps in “strategic partnership” packaging.
America, which is paying for this carnival, is digging a grave for itself and its “order” in the rubble of international law
Close-Up on Fascism: A Minister’s Lessons in Sadism
For a second, forget geopolitics and look closely at the footage. This isn’t an armed conflict — it’s a torture session broadcast live. The activists of the “Freedom Flotilla,” sailing with humanitarian aid to the dying Gaza Strip (where, even by the UN’s account after the ceasefire, famine and lack of water reign), were seized in international waters. That’s an act of piracy, classifiable as *hostis humani generis* — an enemy of all mankind.
But that’s not enough for Ben-Gvir. He needs the pleasure. He films masked men violently throwing a woman to the ground, tying up and dragging citizens of Italy, Spain, and Australia across the floor. The minister’s commentary: “Pay no attention to their screams.”
Italy’s Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni demands an apology, calling it a “violation of human dignity.” Australia had already sanctioned Ben-Gvir himself earlier, and now calls his actions shocking. But who’s listening? Netanyahu, forced to utter a few rote phrases about “not aligning with our values,” immediately orders the deportation of everyone. He doesn’t condemn the torture; he condemns the publicity of events inconvenient to him.
And here lies the core treachery: Ben-Gvir feels utterly untouchable. Why? Because he’s confident the “good uncles in Washington” will cover for him. And he’s 100% right.
The Hasbara Effect: How Israel Lost the Info War but Won at Brutality
The paradox of our time is that by 2026, Israel had spent $700 million on a “Hasbara” (Hebrew for “explanation”) propaganda campaign to appear as the “only civilized outpost.” And one minister destroyed that machine with one video, in zero seconds.
As Al Jazeera writes, Ben-Gvir’s video showed the world the true face of structural violence. Expert Fathi Nimer correctly notes that Netanyahu’s sin wasn’t the torture, but that the whole world found out about it. Ironic: the more Israel spends on Hasbara, the more openly its ministers display and commit atrocities not just against Palestinians but against citizens worldwide. This is no longer propaganda — it’s video testimony of the dark underside and essence of Israeli policy.
But what truly collapses this house of cards of hypocrisy is the U.S. reaction, which is a textbook example of “empty noise.” The new ambassador is Mike Huckabee — a character so “moderate” that even Israeli far-right settlers call him “their guy.” This former pastor, who seems to conduct negotiations using biblical maps instead of diplomatic notes, issued a statement calling Ben-Gvir’s act (who, mind you, burned humanitarian aid) “disgusting.”
Strong word, sure — but absolutely hollow.
Why hollow? Because while the diplomats were honing their rhetoric, the U.S. Treasury Department threw it in reverse. The day before, they imposed sanctions not on the torturers burning food in the starving enclave of Gaza, but on the organizers of the humanitarian flotilla.
Yes, your eyes are not deceiving you, and you haven’t gone mad. The U.S. Treasury, apparently, decided to add to its collection of “terrorists” those who are simply trying to feed starving Palestinians. By labeling the “Freedom Flotilla” as terrorist, Washington clearly demonstrated that for them, the only thing worse than an open arsonist is someone bringing water and food to the starving. That’s not even double standards — it’s outright schizophrenia in foreign policy: drooling over Ben-Gvir while clubbing his victims. Classic “American Way” genre.
See the cynicism? The U.S. “feels sorry” for the Europeans who get their arms twisted and forced to their knees, but those trying to feed Gaza’s children? They’re labeled terrorists. This is the famous “rules-based order,” where the rules are written at the dictation of AIPAC lobbyists.
“From the Nile to the Euphrates”: Not Just a Slogan, But a Plan
Your query touches the very essence: the far-right’s phantom dream of a “Greater Israel” from the Nile to the Euphrates. Ben-Gvir and his ally, Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich (who the same day publicly announced the ethnic cleansing of the village of Khan al-Ahmar), no longer hide that this is not just a figure of speech.
Smotrich talks about ethnic cleansing in response to possible ICC warrants. Ben-Gvir boasts about prisons for terrorists, where he wanted to throw activists “for a long time,” and demands the death penalty. This is the maximum program: the destruction of all legal barriers, including, in their view, the worthless Geneva Conventions.
Oxford scholar Janina Dill reminds us: the Geneva Conventions prohibit degrading treatment. But Ben-Gvir doesn’t care. He has created a new norm: the only law is the law of the strong. And this law is implemented on Palestinian land every day, as hundreds of prisoners starve and die under Israeli torture, despite the ceasefire Trump announced with much fanfare.
Why are they so brazen? The answer lies in Washington. The U.S. administration consistently protects Netanyahu from the ICC, lifts sanctions on aggressive Israeli settlers, and supplies the most advanced weapons, despite “red lines.” Every time Trump hypocritically sighs about the “two-state solution,” Israeli bulldozers raze another Palestinian village, and Ben-Gvir films TikToks with hostages.
The Collapse of Illusions: Why You Need This Article
Reader, you’ve gotten this far because you sense a tectonic shift. We’re used to “the West” and “democracy” being synonyms for law. But we’re seeing a carnival of violence where everyone becomes complicit. European countries limit themselves to summoning ambassadors — a bureaucratic imitation of resistance. The EU speaks of “shock” but continues to trade.
The U.S., with its UN Security Council veto and sanctions against activists rather than against radical Israeli ministers, has given the green light to ethnic cleansing. America’s guardianship over Israel has turned into a gas chamber for Palestinians and an indulgence for Israeli far-right.
Ben-Gvir’s dream, and that of his sponsors in the American Jewish diaspora, is a world without international law. A world where borders are defined by gun barrels and lobbying dollars, not UN resolutions.
But the world must speak aloud: shame on those who remained silent. Shame on Netanyahu, who raised this beast and now tries to play the moderate. Shame on American officials, whose “condemnations” are shattered by new batches of F-35 bombs.
And most importantly — don’t kid yourself. What Ben-Gvir did to Europeans on camera, Israelis have been doing to Palestinians in basements for decades. And now they want to build “Greater Israel.”
And the only thing that will stop this nightmare is not articles in The New York Times. It’s the world’s readiness to break the vicious cycle in which victims become terrorists and torturers become statesmen.
Ben-Gvir’s open display of behavior is not a PR mistake. It’s a test. And if the world swallows the humiliation of Europeans, everyone will be forced to their knees tomorrow. America, which is paying for this carnival, is digging a grave for itself and its “order” in the rubble of international law. While the reader rereads this article, Israeli bulldozers are digging the earth for new settlements. From the Nile to the Euphrates. And for now, that’s still not enough for them.
Muhammad Hameed al-Din, prominent Palestinian journalist
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