Israel’s expansionist ambitions: Lebanon, Syria and the Region in Its Eyes

By Elijah J. Magnier

The recent war on Gaza and statements by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Boaz Bismuth, chairman of the Israeli Knesset’s National Security Committee, have deepened concerns about Israel’s long-term geopolitical ambitions. Both officials have openly stated their intention to remain in Gaza and to extend Israel’s strategic control over Syria and Lebanon, further reinforcing the notion that Israel is not only securing its borders but actively pursuing greater regional dominance.

In a recent statement, Netanyahu also expanded Israel’s military strategy beyond Syria, claiming that ‘our offensive policy is not limited to Syria; it also extends to Lebanon’. Netanyahu declared that Israel “will not give up” five strategic positions it occupies in southern Lebanon. “We are maintaining five checkpoints on the Lebanese side of the border to protect our territory,” he said, clarifying that Israel has no intention of relinquishing control of these sites.

Netanyahu is strategically moving from one war to another without resolving the war in Gaza, which remains an ongoing humanitarian catastrophe. His government has used the Lebanese front and the conflict in Syria to divert attention from its failures on 7 October, when Hamas launched a large-scale attack on southern Israel, exposing serious intelligence and security weaknesses. By prolonging regional conflicts and seizing more land, Netanyahu not only avoids accountability for his government’s mishandling of the 7 October crisis but also seeks to cement his legacy as Israel’s greatest leader – even greater than David Ben-Gurion – by expanding Israel’s territorial reach. His political survival depends on creating a new military reality in which territorial expansion overshadows past failures.