Back to the Mandate Era

Israeli flag. Image created using AI.Israeli flag. Image created using AI.

Ahead of tonight’s Cabinet meeting, the Co-Chairs of the Sovereignty Movement wish to warn of the emerging political trends in the international arena, which may return the State of Israel to the days of the Mandate and severely undermine its sovereignty.

Over the past year, under the shadow of war, old concepts have begun to reappear in new packaging.
“The New Middle East”—that vision from the 1990s—has returned to the discussion table, this time in the form of the “20-Point Plan” and international rehabilitation initiatives.

Within this framework, initiatives are being advanced that include:

*A Board of Peace
*A technical committee to oversee Gaza, led by Palestinian technocrats
*A multinational force for security supervision
*A transitional body leading to Palestinian self-governance and a future Palestinian state—including in Judea and Samaria

These are sophisticated systems of concessions that steadily erode Israel’s sovereignty.

At the core of the damage lies the attempt to replace direct Israeli control with international guarantees and regional partnerships.

Three Dangerous Traps

First Trap: Civil Administration by Foreign Actors
The 20-Point Plan transfers the management of daily life in Gaza to a Palestinian technocratic authority, among them Ali Sha’ath, former Deputy Minister in the Palestinian Authority.
Instead of direct Israeli control, a hostile system is established that is not committed to Israel’s security.

Second Trap: Damage to Security Freedom of Action
The IDF’s freedom of action becomes hostage to foreign interests.
Every security operation will have to take into account Riyadh, Abu Dhabi, and Washington—who will, in effect, become the real decision-makers on the ground.

Third Trap: Privatization and Loss of Control
Introducing private security companies into humanitarian management creates a severe loss of control.
These bodies are not committed to Israel’s security and are even hostile to it.

A New Mandate on the Land of Israel

The combination of these processes creates a reality of a new mandate, in which foreign powers determine our security—just as in the days of the British Mandate.

Past experience proves that every surrender of sovereignty in favor of international guarantees leads to escalation and terror.
Without full Israeli control —political, territorial, and military—over Gaza, Judea and Samaria, the “New Middle East” will become a dangerous version of the old one.

Warning from Failed International Experiments
Similar attempts have failed in Lebanon, Afghanistan, Iraq, Bosnia, Kosovo, and during the Arab Spring.
In all these cases, international involvement brought not stability, but chaos.

Conclusion and Call to Action
The conclusion is clear:
Division of authority + external supervision = a return to the days of the Mandate.

Israel must move from defense to sovereign initiative.
Security will not come from improving international plans, but from establishing facts on the ground: settlement and the application of sovereignty over Gaza and Judea and Samaria, and making clear that Israel is the sole sovereign power between the sea and the Jordan.

The National Price Demands a Clear Decision
It is unacceptable that two years of fighting, more than 900 fallen soldiers, thousands of wounded, and 1,200 murdered in the horrific pogrom—the worst since the Holocaust—should end without total victory.

If these are the results of the war, it means we have failed.
And we must act courageously to change course.

Three Essential Reforms

* Fundamental reform of the judicial system—to enable the government to truly prevail

* Fundamental reform of the IDF high command—still influenced by outdated Oslo concepts

* Strengthening military, agricultural, and economic independence—even at an economic cost

Without these steps, we may, G-d forbid, return to the days of the Mandate and be forced once again to rebuild the Haganah, Lehi, and Irgun.

Summary
History teaches that the Jewish people have flourished only when they were sovereign over their destiny.
Just as previous generations refused to accept foreign rule and established a sovereign state, so too in our generation the responsibility lies with us to choose:

No to dependence and concessions.
No to a new mandate.
Yes to full Israeli sovereignty, settlement, and true victory—for the sake of future generations

January 26, 2026 | Comments »

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