Israel’s West Bank Military Operations and the Path to Annexation: A Comprehensive Analysis

Introduction

The recent escalation of Israeli military operations in the occupied West Bank, marked by unprecedented violence, mass displacement, and the deployment of heavy weaponry, has reignited debates over Israel’s long-term objectives in the territory.

Since January 2025, Operation Iron Wall—a Gaza-style offensive involving tanks, airstrikes, and the depopulation of refugee camps—has displaced over 40,000 Palestinians, destroyed civilian infrastructure, and intensified fears of systemic annexation.

This campaign aligns with explicit statements from far-right Israeli officials, including Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, who declared 2025 the year of formal West Bank annexation.

By analyzing Israel’s historical annexation strategies, the political calculus behind recent operations, and the muted international response, this report argues that the current military campaign serves as both a precursor and enabler of de jure annexation, fulfilling a decades-old ambition of the Israeli right to erase Palestinian territorial sovereignty.

Historical Context: From De Facto to De Jure Annexation

Settler Colonialism as a Foundation

Israel’s annexation strategy in the West Bank is not a sudden policy shift but the culmination of decades of systematic settlement expansion and demographic engineering.

Since 1967, Israel has constructed 132 settlements and 124 outposts housing over 430,000 settlers, fragmenting Palestinian land and undermining territorial continuity.

These settlements, illegal under international law, have been bolstered by parallel infrastructure—segregated roads, checkpoints, and barriers—that entrenches Israeli control.

The Oslo Accords’ division of the West Bank into Areas A, B, and C (with Israel retaining complete control over 60% in Area C) institutionalized this fragmentation, enabling “creeping annexation” through land confiscation and restricted Palestinian movement.

Legal and Political Precursors

The Netanyahu government’s 2020 pledge to annex the Jordan Valley and all settlements under the Trump-era “Peace to Prosperity” plan marked a turning point, normalizing annexation discourse.

Though delayed due to international backlash, the groundwork persisted: in 2023, Israel amended the Disengagement Law to legalize four settlements in the northern West Bank, signaling intent to formalize control.

Far-right figures like Smotrich have since framed annexation as inevitable, citing ideological claims to “Judea and Samaria” and leveraging U.S. political shifts under Trump.

Operation Iron Wall: Military Escalation as Annexation Catalyst

Tactical Shifts and Strategic Objectives

Launched on January 21, 2025—48 hours after the Gaza ceasefire—Operation Iron Wall represents a deliberate escalation in Israel’s West Bank strategy.

Deploying 12 military battalions, drones, and Merkava tanks (the first since 2002), the offensive has targeted Jenin, Tulkarm, and Tubas, displacing 45,000 Palestinians and killing over 60, including children as young as two.

Defense Minister Israel Katz framed the operation as a “shift in security strategy,” explicitly linking it to long-term occupation: “We will not allow residents to return… terrorism to grow”.

By bulldozing homes, severing water pipelines, and besieging hospitals, Israel has replicated Gaza’s “devastation playbook” to render areas uninhabitable for Palestinians while securing settler expansion corridors.

Demographic Reengineering

The depopulation of refugee camps—Jenin, Nur Shams, and Faraa—is central to annexation. Refugee camps, symbols of Palestinian identity and resistance, are being dismantled to erase historical claims. Israel’s ban on UNRWA operations in the West Bank exacerbates this, stripping Palestinians of aid and institutional memory.

Concurrently, Smotrich has ordered the dissolution of the Israeli military’s Civil Administration, transitioning Palestinian governance to settler-led bodies. This move would nullify the Palestinian Authority (PA) and absorb the West Bank into Israel’s administrative framework.

Political Drivers: Far-Right Ideology and Coalition Dynamics

The Smotrich-Netanyahu Axis

Prime Minister Netanyahu’s reliance on far-right coalition partners has tethered his political survival to annexation.

Smotrich’s Religious Zionist Party, which advocates a “Greater Israel” from the Jordan River to the Mediterranean, secured key concessions in the coalition agreement, including a mandate to pursue sovereignty over the West Bank.

Smotrich’s control over the Defense Ministry’s West Bank administration has accelerated land seizures and settler violence, with 2024 witnessing a 40% spike in attacks.

His rhetoric—calling to “wipe out” Palestinian towns and annex the West Bank “step by step”—reflects a broader ideological push to replace Palestinians with Jewish sovereignty.

Exploiting Geopolitical Alignments

The Netanyahu government views the post-October 2023 landscape—characterized by a global focus on Gaza and Trump’s reelection—as a window to annexation.

During Trump’s first term, the U.S. legitimized settlement growth and recognized Jerusalem as Israel’s capital; his return has emboldened Smotrich to prepare annexation maps for White House approval.

With the Biden administration funding Israel’s Gaza war and the ICC/ICJ rulings ignored, Israel perceives impunity for further territorial grabs.

International Law and the Illusion of Legality

Violations of Occupation Norms

Israel’s actions violate the Fourth Geneva Convention, which prohibits population transfer, property destruction, and annexation by force.

The ICJ’s 2024 advisory opinion reiterated the illegality of Israel’s occupation, demanding its immediate end.

Yet Operation Iron Wall flouts these norms: home demolitions, collective punishment, and the use of human shields (e.g., converting Palestinian homes into military bases) constitute war crimes.

The PA’s collapse under Israeli pressure—and its collaboration in arresting resistance fighters—further undermines Palestinian self-determination.

The Annexation Blueprint

Annexation would formalize Israel’s apartheid system, granting settlers full citizenship while confining Palestinians to isolated enclaves without rights.

Smotrich’s plan focuses on Area C (60% of the West Bank), where 385,000 settlers already outnumber Palestinians.

By seizing this land—rich in water and agricultural resources—Israel would leave Palestinians confined to disconnected cities (Area A), dependent on Israeli permits for travel and construction.

Humanitarian Catastrophe and Resistance

Displacement and Ethnic Cleansing

The 40,000 displaced in Operation Iron Wall face a crisis mirroring Gaza: families shelter in mosques, schools, and olive groves without food or medical aid.

Israel’s refusal to allow returns—a policy Defense Minister Katz vows to maintain for a year—echoes the 1948 Nakba, signaling permanent expulsion.

In Jenin, tanks patrol bulldozed neighborhoods as settlers establish outposts, a tactic used in Hebron’s H2 zone to seize Palestinian homes.

Palestinian Resistance and the Intifada Question

While the PA’s security coordination with Israel has fragmented resistance, grassroots mobilization persists.

The Jenin Brigade, though outgunned, continues guerrilla strikes while protests in Ramallah demand PA dissolution.

FAF warns that annexation could spark a third Intifada, as seen in 1987 and 2000 when mass uprisings challenged Israeli control.

However, Israel’s fragmentation tactics—deepened by the Iron Wall—may preempt unified resistance, isolating communities into “manageable” pockets.

Conclusion

Annexation as a Point of No Return

Israel’s West Bank operations are inseparable from its annexation agenda.

By combining military escalation, settlement expansion, and political maneuvering, the Netanyahu-Smotrich axis seeks to realize a decades-old vision of a “Greater Israel.”

The international community’s inaction—particularly the U.S.’s potential endorsement under Trump—highlights this international law violation.

Annexation would extinguish the two-state solution, cement apartheid, and destabilize the region. For Palestinians, it demands a unified strategy of grassroots resistance and global solidarity to challenge Israel’s impunity.

It poses a moral reckoning for the world: Will annexation be normalized or confronted as a crime against humanity?