CALL IT WHAT IT IS – ISRAEL’S ACCELERATED ETHNIC CLEANSING IN THE WEST BANK

Dr. Common Good

While Trump’s feckless Iran war persists, democracy is threatened in the U.S., and the global economy and Western alliance system frays, the Israeli government of Benjamin Netanyahu accelerates its push to force Palestinians out of their homes in the West Bank and establish more and more illegal settlements, to the point where a Palestinian state will become impossible.  Far right-wing members of the Israeli government, including Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich (also Religious Zionist Party leader), along with National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir (also Otzma Yehudit leader), openly and brazenly reject any international human rights conventions or basic moral standards in this naked exercise in ethnic cleansing. Meanwhile, the Trump administration says nothing, and does nothing.

Lest any reader be concerned about use of the term “ethnic cleansing” in this post, with respect to the situation described, I say that those who falsely label that term as somehow anti-Semitic should bow their heads in shame. That is propaganda, pure and simple. As I have said in multiple previous posts (e.g., March 27, April 26, 2026, and January 26, 2025), what continues apace in the West Bank will not increase Israel’s security. It will not lead to a thriving, productive, democratic Israel. It will, as it has already done, further Israel’s trajectory as an international pariah, breed more and more hatred among the peoples of Palestine and Gaza, and fuel the increasing calls by younger voters in the U.S. to halt all military support for Israel. So, to AIPAC and others who seek to suppress outrage and criticism over Israeli policy, it is you who are damaging Israel, not the critics. Those who stand against the repugnant, immoral policies of the Netanyahu government, and those who advocate for a secure and peaceful coexistence for both Palestinians and Israelis, are actually looking towards a future that is positive and sustainable – not the dystopian, isolated, apartheid security state that is the inevitable consequence of the current path.

Now, before reviewing some facts on the ground, let’s do a little thought exercise as analogous to the West Bank, even if the circumstances in this exercise are by themselves imaginary. Suppose Mexico was much more powerful than the United States, or, to be more specific, much more powerful than Texas. And suppose that Mexico’s power was in large part derived from massive amounts of military weaponry and aid from, say, Russia, or China.  Now suppose that, over the course of many decades, people from Mexico increasingly resettled in Texas and just began pushing Texans off their land, sometimes by force, sometimes destroying crops and livestock, burning houses, and physically attacking or killing them. And many of those who committed these acts of violence and theft also claimed a right to do so because that land was once Mexico (which, in fact, it was). Some zealots even claimed that there was no such thing as Texas, and no such people as Texans. I ask you: Would this be right? Would you not condemn this? Would it surprise you if Texans expressed anger at Mexico and those countries that gave it support? Would it surprise you if groups of Texans formed paramilitary units and began resisting the Mexican incursion, in the process committing acts of terrorism? I venture to say that it would not, and I will simply say that a cursory look at actual Texas history will support my claim.

With that in mind, let’s consider a selection of recent facts on the ground:

• According to an August 20, 2026 report from Human Rights Watch, this has been a record year for settler attacks on Palestinians. Attacks by settlers in the occupied West Bank are driving the accelerated and forced displacement of Palestinian communities. Furthermore, the report states that “Israeli authorities are arming, funding, and granting impunity to the violent settlers responsible for these escalating deadly abuses.” The settler attacks include killings, including children, as well as assaults, sexual violence, physical and mental abuse, arbitrary detention, arson, property destruction, and theft.

• The UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights recently documented about 190 settler attacks per month in the first four months of 2026, putting the West Bank on a trajectory to reach more than 2,000 attacks by the end of the year.

• In March, the Times of Israel reported that the government had approved about 50 million shekels (about US$16 million) for illegal settlement outposts, funding that has been used for all-terrain vehicles, night-vision goggles, and drones that settlers use to harass Palestinian communities. According to Amnesty International, the Israeli Ministry of Settlement and National Missions’ budget has increased 122 percent under the current government (see Human Rights watch report).

• On July 11, a gang of settlers even attacked a CNN news team that was reporting on the anniversary of the killing of an American citizen in the West Bank. See https://www.cnn.com/2026/07/11/middleeast/settlers-arrested-attack-on-journalists-intl

• With respect to Palestinians in Gaza, CBS News (August 17) reported that Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir claimed that Gazan Palestinians are “not even people.” “I think targeted assassinations should be carried out in Gaza, taking down 30 to 40 every night…I see all of Gaza as ours.”

• Concurrent with the attacks, Israeli settlements policy has proceeded with utter disregard for international law. On August 20, CNN reported that the Israeli government just advanced an internationally condemned settlement plan in the occupied West Bank that could split the territory and destroy the possibility of a two-state solution. The Israeli Housing Ministry issued a notice inviting bids to construct more than 1,200 housing units in the E1 sector of the West Bank, near Jerusalem. This would create a swath of Jewish settlements from East Jerusalem to the West Bank, effectively dividing the West Bank into north and south and precluding a contiguous Palestinian state. When the Israeli government gave final approval to the plan, Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich said, “The Palestinian state is being erased from the table, not with slogans, but with actions.” This was done even as all Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank are viewed as illegal under international law by the UN and most of the international community. Yet settlers ignore that consensus and have routinely established new unauthorized settlements. They know that the Israeli government is likely to approve them.

• For reference, Article 49 of the Fourth Geneva Convention prohibits an occupying power from forcibly transferring, displacing, or deporting the civilian population of an occupied territory in whole or in part – either directly or indirectly, and prohibits the replacement of the displaced persons by the occupier (for more information on this, see Human Rights Watch, International Committee of the Red Cross, and rulings by the International Court of Justice).

Now, let’s revisit the question. Ethnic cleansing? The answer, Dr. Common Good emphatically asserts, is YES. Are you, as an American, willing to support this?

THE DEPTHS OF DEPRAVITY — RAND PAUL AND HIS OBSCENE PERSECUTION OF DR. ANTHONY FAUCI, AN AMERICAN HERO

Dr. Common Good

Dr. Common Good cares deeply about this country, its people and its promise. But what we witnessed Wednesday July 29 during the debased spectacle of a Senate “hearing” on the honorable Dr. Anthony Fauci, spearheaded by the dishonorable Senator Rand Paul, calls into question something profound about where we are at this moment. Dr. Fauci is a national hero, an exemplar of public service and sacrifice for this country and for the world. Rand Paul has shown himself to be little more than a malicious, obsessive thug and firebrand who doesn’t hold the slightest candle to Dr. Fauci. Let’s just see how they compare in terms of their contributions to public health:

Fauci’s accomplishments in public health – a brief summary of dedication, sacrifice and achievement:

• MD and immunologist (and expert on infectious diseases).
• Became head of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (at NIH) in 1984, and remained there until his retirement in 2022.
• For decades, he was a leader and key force behind U.S. efforts to prevent and fight HIV/AIDS, SARS (severe acute respiratory syndrome), the swine flu, MERS (Middle East respiratory syndrome), Ebola, and COVID-19. His dedication to the fight against HIV/AIDS is legendary, and during the Ebola crisis, he personally worked in Ebola wards to treat patients, putting himself at risk.  
• He was an instrumental force in developing biodefense drugs and vaccines after the 9/11 attacks.
• He worked closely with Republican President George W. Bush to create PEPFAR (The President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief), perhaps the most successful global HIV/AIDS initiative ever implemented. For this, President George W. Bush awarded him the Presidential Medal of Freedom.
• He served as chief medical advisor to President Joe Biden, and as a key member of the White House Coronavirus Task Force under Trump I.

Rand Paul’s accomplishments in public health – a brief summary of next-to-nothing:

• MD, ophthalmologist (not an infectious disease specialist)
• In 2025, he introduced the Health Marketplace and Savings Accounts for All Act, which would make all Americans eligible for Health Savings Accounts (HSAs) and expand Association Health Plans.
• He has supported various efforts to curb federal spending on public health, including the introduction of a bill that would essentially gut NIH as we know it.

That’s it. That’s all. Not a stellar record.

So, tell me, who has given of himself over and over for the health of the public? The record could not be more clear. Rand Paul has done almost nothing to help Americans through all the public health crises listed above – HIV/AIDS, SARS, swine flu, MERS, Ebola, COVID-19, or any others. And yet Paul, an avid purveyor of conspiracy theories, obtained and used Fauci’s private diaries as cannon fodder in last Wednesday’s hearings, as an attempt to discredit him and boost his insistence that COVID-19 resulted from a viral leakage at a laboratory in Wuhan, China, during research allegedly supported by Fauci. The diaries contain no real evidence in support of Paul’s ranting, or in support of his allegation that Fauci lied to Congress about the origins of COVID-19. These are Fauci’s private diaries. Like any diary, they are full of musings and notes and impressions. These do include notes on speculation among colleagues regarding the origins of COVID-19 at a time when there was little actual evidence. They also include, by the way, his characterizations of Trump as “infinitely lying,” “out of control,” “an idiot,” and “a true embarrassment.” Funny, the Republicans did not highlight those diary entries.  

BOILING IT DOWN — WHY THE IRAN WAR IS WRONG, IN EVERY WAY

Dr. Common Good

Before going any further, let me say that what I discuss in this post does not ignore the disruptive role that Iran has played in the region, in supporting Hamas, Hezbollah, and in other ways. Those issues have been around for a long time, and they are not the cause of this war, as stated by either the Trump administration or Netanyahu’s Israel. Dr. Common Good’s strong objections to the Iran war, outlined below, focus on the war itself and its purported casus belli:

1. There was no real documented need for the war to begin with. Iran was not close to having any nuclear weapon. There was no “imminent threat” as Trump claimed. That was the intelligence community’s assessment, which he ignored because he said he “had a feeling.” Not only that, but Trump claimed that the previous bombing attacks in June 2025 destroyed Iran’s capability to develop such a weapon, so why would any further attack be necessary? In Dr. Common Good’s view, Trump was “high” on aggression after he so easily toppled Venezuela’s government, and he wanted to “play with his power” again. This coincided with Netanyahu’s longstanding desire to make war on Iran. Yet all of this was unnecessary, because before Trump’s first term, there had been an agreement in place, enforced by an international process, to prevent Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapons capability. That was the successful 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), negotiated by the Obama administration, between Iran, the U.S., China, Russia, France, the United Kingdom, Germany, and the European Union (see the June 26 blog post for details). Trump tore that up, and is therefore responsible in large part for the situation we face. He “made this bed,” so to speak. 

2. The war is illegal. Only Congress has the power to declare war, and the War Powers Act imposes a 60-day limit on military action without Congressional approval. That is the law. But Trump does not care about such Constitutional niceties. And sadly, his Republican sycophants in Congress clearly do not have the courage to assert their role.

3. Simply put, the war is colossally stupid. It is being conducted with no forethought, no strategy, no endgame, and in complete ignorance of the impact it is having on our allies, on the global economy, and on the reputation of the United States as a member in good standing of the global order. Remember, the Strait of Hormuz was never closed before the war, but now it has become a key part of Iran’s strategy for wielding power. Before the war, the Iranian government was facing domestic opposition; now that is hardly the case. So, Trump has really empowered Iran in many ways, not weakened it. Yes, Iran’s military capability is degraded. But they have in turn new strategies for exerting power. And from a U.S. military standpoint, we have been wasting a huge amount of money and depleting weapons inventories. For what?

4. The consequences of this war are terrible, and the war is only expanding. How many Iranian lives have been lost, including children? How many American service persons have been killed or wounded (at last count, more than 600 wounded and at least 18 killed)? The global economy and supply chain have been disrupted for months, harming farmers (fertilizer travels through the strait), gas prices for people, air travel, and truck transportation, among other things. The war has widened, now involving the Saudis, damage to Gulf States, Houthi rebels, and so on. We have opened even a further rift between the U.S. and our important allies in Europe and Asia, most of whom see this war as an unprovoked war of choice. 

5. Because Trump and company entered this war with such ignorance (combined with arrogance), he does not know how to get out of it. If he sues for peace or pulls out, he will be humiliated. If he goes all out with military action, it will be a humanitarian disaster and a disaster for everyone concerned. There is little question that American boots on the ground would be necessary — a lot of boots — to invade Iran or, for example, take control of Kharg Island (the major oil export terminal). 

So, the purported goals of the war are to dismantle Iran’s nuclear weapons capability and to re-open the Strait of Hormuz. As you can see – plainly, I hope – these goals are absurd. The 2015 JCPOA had already dismantled and prevented Iran’s nuclear weapons capability (before Trump nixed it), and the Strait of Hormuz had always been open before the war.  

Lastly, think about this: For Iran, and other countries, the U.S. attack has likely intensified the motivation to acquire nuclear weapons, not weakened it. Why? Everyone can see, for example, that North Korea, which has a known nuclear weapons capability, threatens its neighbors and otherwise disrupts regional stability, but is not attacked. What lesson do you think that offers? Wise heads would understand this, and seek other ways to prevent Iran from going down the nuclear road. We did that once. But there are no wise heads in the Trump administration. Just children, enamored with their toys.