Former NATO Colonel Believes Israel’s Main Goal is the Extermination of Palestinians

GENEVA – Israel’s tactics in Gaza go against all rules of counter-insurgency and can only be explained as a deliberate attempt to “eliminate Palestinians,” according to former NATO analyst and Swiss intelligence officer Colonel Jacques Baud.

Speaking to ‘Going Underground’ host Afshin Rattansi on Monday (24/6/2024), Baud said, “Israel is not trying to solve the problem (Hamas violence) from a political perspective, as we usually do in efforts to eradicate the rebellion.”

“They do it with violence, meaning they destroy people and that’s the main goal,” he said.

In nearly nine months of fighting against Hamas, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) have killed nearly 38,000 people in Gaza, the majority of them women and children, according to the latest figures from Gaza’s health ministry.

Israeli Prime Minister (PM) Benjamin Netanyahu has repeatedly stated that Israel will continue its campaign until it achieves “total victory” over Palestinian fighters, but has been more evasive when asked about its post-war plans in Gaza.

Netanyahu said Israel would maintain “full security control” over Gaza, but refused to support calls by his more moderate allies to form a multinational government in the territory.

“The only explanation for Israel’s refusal to provide a political solution is not that Israel is stupid and doesn’t know how to fight,” Baud continued. “(That’s because) they did this deliberately to eliminate the Palestinian people.”

“Palestine will only be a Jewish territory, and that has always been a consistent policy,” he told Rattansi.

He explained, “They don’t dare to do it in one shot. They did it in a brutal way. The ultimate goal is to empty Palestine of Palestinians.”

Although Netanyahu has never called for wholesale depopulation of Gaza, several prominent figures in his government have called for it.