Palestine This Week: Israel on the brink of civil war?

In this episode of Palestine This Week we begin with the news about the Sde Teiman detention centre which the Israeli Military Police raided on Monday, detaining nine soldiers on suspicion of abusing a Palestinian detainee. This notorious prison has held hundreds of Palestinians in horrific conditions since 7 October, with allegations of sexual abuse, including rape and torture and has been ordered to be closed by the attorney general. The raid created a political storm in Israel, with many protesting against the detention of reservists.The conversation then moved on to the weekend’s deadly attack on the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, setting Israel’s annexation of Syrian territory and its illegal occupation within a broader historical context.

Host Nasim Ahmed and our weekly guest Mouin Rabbani dissect the stories and headlines from the rocket attack on the Israeli occupied Golan Heights, which resulted in 12 deaths and 30 injuries. They share their insights into the implications of the attack, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s response, and the broader geopolitical ramifications.

The conversation then shifts to Netanyahu’s contentious decision to halt the medical evacuation of sick children from Gaza to the UAE, a move condemned by Physicians for Human Rights as a ‘cruel game’ with children’s lives. Our hosts also examine Hezbollah’s denial of involvement in the Majdal Shams attack and discuss the legal status of the Golan Heights, considering the International Court of Justice’s likely stance on the territory’s occupation and the broader implications for Israel’s self-defence claims over an illegally occupied territory. They highlight the demographic composition of the Golan Heights, focusing on the Druze community’s resistance to Israeli citizenship and their protests against the Israeli military presence.

Finally the conversation turns to Netanyahu’s unprecedented fourth address to the US Congress amidst accusations of genocide and war crimes. Exploring the political theatre surrounding his speech, the discontent among former Israeli security officials, and the positioning of US Vice President Kamala Harris at a time when the UK announced that it had dropped its plan to challenge the International Criminal Court (ICC)’s request for arrest warrants for Israeli officials including Netanyahu.