Jeffrey Sachs

claimed by Israel and now with an expanded territory and East Jerusalem. So everything that was captured in 1967, Netanyahu explicitly said, we're never giving that back. Now, there are two motivations for that. One, Netanyahu says, not safe to give it back because he doesn't want to negotiate any kind of peace or any state of Palestine. Then there are

religious zealots, I would use even stronger terms, who use the book of Joshua, which is 2,700 years ago, that said, well, God gave us everything from the river in Egypt, meaning the Nile, to the Euphrates. And there are zealots in Israel, and they're in the government, who believe, yes, this is God's ordinance. We're going to take whatever we want.

religious zealots, I would use even stronger terms, who use the book of Joshua, which is 2,700 years ago, that said, well, God gave us everything from the river in Egypt, meaning the Nile, to the Euphrates. And there are zealots in Israel, and they're in the government, who believe, yes, this is God's ordinance. We're going to take whatever we want.

religious zealots, I would use even stronger terms, who use the book of Joshua, which is 2,700 years ago, that said, well, God gave us everything from the river in Egypt, meaning the Nile, to the Euphrates. And there are zealots in Israel, and they're in the government, who believe, yes, this is God's ordinance. We're going to take whatever we want.

So the Niles, the Euphrates would include what? Well, if you take the greater view of this, it would include Lebanon, it would include Syria, it would include part of Iraq, it would include part of Egypt. And some of these people actually quote the Bible and say, we're going to do this. And it's... It's a little sad and absolutely terribly frightening.

So the Niles, the Euphrates would include what? Well, if you take the greater view of this, it would include Lebanon, it would include Syria, it would include part of Iraq, it would include part of Egypt. And some of these people actually quote the Bible and say, we're going to do this. And it's... It's a little sad and absolutely terribly frightening.

So the Niles, the Euphrates would include what? Well, if you take the greater view of this, it would include Lebanon, it would include Syria, it would include part of Iraq, it would include part of Egypt. And some of these people actually quote the Bible and say, we're going to do this. And it's... It's a little sad and absolutely terribly frightening.

But I'd say the more narrow vision is what they call from the river to the sea, from the Jordan River to the Mediterranean. That's taken as a pro-Palestinian chant, but it's exactly the opposite. It is the greater Israel literal vision of Israel. the government of Israel. It's the literal idea. There happen to be seven million Palestinians there. That's a minor problem.

But I'd say the more narrow vision is what they call from the river to the sea, from the Jordan River to the Mediterranean. That's taken as a pro-Palestinian chant, but it's exactly the opposite. It is the greater Israel literal vision of Israel. the government of Israel. It's the literal idea. There happen to be seven million Palestinians there. That's a minor problem.

But I'd say the more narrow vision is what they call from the river to the sea, from the Jordan River to the Mediterranean. That's taken as a pro-Palestinian chant, but it's exactly the opposite. It is the greater Israel literal vision of Israel. the government of Israel. It's the literal idea. There happen to be seven million Palestinians there. That's a minor problem.

Maybe they can be ethnically cleansed. Maybe they can be thrown out. Maybe they can just be ruled in a military dominant way. Of course, probably well over 100,000 have been killed in the most recent war by Israel. Official count, 45,000 of bodies claimed from the rubble, but we know that there are a lot more that have died since this war in Gaza began. But all of this is to say that

Maybe they can be ethnically cleansed. Maybe they can be thrown out. Maybe they can just be ruled in a military dominant way. Of course, probably well over 100,000 have been killed in the most recent war by Israel. Official count, 45,000 of bodies claimed from the rubble, but we know that there are a lot more that have died since this war in Gaza began. But all of this is to say that

Maybe they can be ethnically cleansed. Maybe they can be thrown out. Maybe they can just be ruled in a military dominant way. Of course, probably well over 100,000 have been killed in the most recent war by Israel. Official count, 45,000 of bodies claimed from the rubble, but we know that there are a lot more that have died since this war in Gaza began. But all of this is to say that

This greater Israel idea says we can't make peace with the Palestinians. So anyone that supports the Palestinians is by definition a mortal threat to us. And when you have a mortal threat, you must destroy it.

This greater Israel idea says we can't make peace with the Palestinians. So anyone that supports the Palestinians is by definition a mortal threat to us. And when you have a mortal threat, you must destroy it.

This greater Israel idea says we can't make peace with the Palestinians. So anyone that supports the Palestinians is by definition a mortal threat to us. And when you have a mortal threat, you must destroy it.

Well, it's part of a 30-year effort. This is Netanyahu's war to remake the Middle East. It's been a disaster. It continues to be a disaster. But as Netanyahu himself said after Assad left, we have remade the Middle East. And so it has to be understood as something that didn't just happen in a week, but has been an ongoing war throughout the Middle East.

Here's the episode. And maybe the right way to understand what's happened with Syria is to think back to a really remarkable occasion when Wesley Clark, the general who headed NATO, went to the Pentagon just after 9-11. And famously, he showed a piece of paper that said, we're going to have seven wars in five years. And he was completely dumbfounded.

He said, what does this have to do with anything? And He was told that the neocons and the Israelis are going to remake the Middle East. And the seven countries on the list are very telling. They were Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, Iran, and then in Africa, Libya. Somalia, and Sudan. And seven countries, we've been at war in six of them now.

And I mean we, the United States, on behalf of Israel, including in Syria. And so what happened in Syria last week was the culmination of a long-term war. effort by Israel to reshape the Middle East in its image.