The Land Grab In Judea and Samaria with Israel Ganz

_THE INTERVIEW_

This interview was edited for clarity.

Ari: The situation in Judea and Samaria is something that, for sure, not many understand.

Can you give your opinion on how the media views what’s happening here — what they call “settlements” in Judea and Samaria, or the “West Bank” — and what they’re missing about the reality?

Israel: I like people like you who understand that the situation is very different from what’s shown in the media, and who want to show the reality to the people. So, thank you for that.

It’ll take time to fully answer your question, but I’ll try to make it short. What was the biggest mistake we made on October 6, the day before October 7?

We knew about the terror. We knew everything about Hamas. We trained for it. So why were we so surprised?

The mistake was thinking that if we gave them money — whether from Qatar or elsewhere — they would build a future, prosperity, peace. We were wrong. We didn’t understand that this is a religious war.

They hate America. They hate Israel. It’s not about their situation in Gaza. They took billions of dollars and instead of helping the people, they used it to build tunnels and missiles.

And here, in Judea and Samaria, it’s the same.

How do I know? I’ll give you facts. First, we have polls. One published on October 9 — just after the war began — showed that 86 percent of Arabs in Judea and Samaria supported the Hamas massacre.

The Palestinian Authority (PA) pays salaries to terrorists. If you kill Jews, your family receives a lifelong salary from the PA. They build neighborhoods where you can get an apartment if you murder Jews.

PA police have trained in Afghanistan. I can show you videos. They jump from planes, they carry RPGs. I’ve never seen a police officer in DC or New York with an RPG. That’s not police — it’s military.

After we killed Sinwar, they held a meeting and called him a hero. So we’re dealing with the same people here. They want to kill me and kill you.

Let’s continue with facts: since the war began, the IDF has killed over 1,500 terrorists in Judea and Samaria — people trying to attack our communities and soldiers. Over 15,000 people have been arrested. That’s 20,000 terrorists either arrested or killed in this small area.

The army operates every day and night. Just recently, they found a bomb factory in Jenin — bombs to kill people like me and you. And they march in the streets everywhere — “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free.” What does that mean? It means no Israel.

The head of PA policy is also the head of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO). The PLO was founded in 1965 — before the 1967 war, before Judea and Samaria. What was its goal? To remove Jews from all of Israel.

These people want to kill us.

When was the last PA election? 2006. Why hasn’t there been another in 20 years? Because they know Hamas would win. Hamas, the Muslim Brotherhood, Islamic Jihad — they’re all here.

When I host people here and they speak about a two-state solution, I ask — Are you crazy? Gaza is 20 kilometers wide. Judea and Samaria is 350 kilometers — stretching from Be’er Sheva to Hadera, across from Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, and more.

We couldn’t stop 6,000 terrorists from crossing 20 kilometers in Gaza. What will happen if hundreds of thousands attack from 350 kilometers away?

When people talk about a two-state solution, I hope they wake up to the realities of October 7. Because we were always saying — it would be a terror state. It would be an Iranian arm, firing missiles at us.

There will never be a Palestinian state here. Never. We must have full security control. If we don’t, we’ll be attacked. No airplanes will be safe.

We must declare: the goal of terror is to frighten us, to remove us from here. But this is historically and legally part of Israel.

If Arabs want to live here, fine. But only under one condition — no terror.

Ari: On the international law part, the global media narrative is that Jewish settlers are moving in, breaking international law, and disrupting everything.

I think The New York Times even claimed that Israel’s killing of Sinwar may have violated international law, which is outrageous.

Last week in Hebron, I was shown a map by some hilltop settlers. It showed how Palestinians are also building illegal settlements and rapidly populating the land. Some Israeli settlers are trying to slow that growth.

I didn’t realize how quickly the Arab population is expanding in Judea and Samaria. Can you speak to that?

Israel: First of all — facts and law. I had a podcast with Natasha Hausdorff, a lawyer, and she explained clearly that under international law, Israel has the right to be here.

The original British Mandate’s goal was to establish a Jewish state. When Britain left, Jordan came in — illegally. Jordan doesn’t claim rights here anymore. So, who are the Palestinians? Where did they come from? There was never a Palestinian state.

So when people talk about “occupied territory” — occupied from whom? Jordan? Jordan doesn’t want it. They admit they were illegal here.

About six years ago, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo came here, just 300 meters away, and declared that settlements are not illegal. The US recognized that claim.

According to the Oslo Accords, Area C is under full Israeli control — security, municipal, everything. Yet Palestinians have built over 103,000 illegal structures in Area C — homes, farms, roads.

I’ll show you a picture I took in Binyamin. It shows illegal construction funded by foreign countries — Belgium, Switzerland, others — under the UN flag.

Imagine if I built something illegally on a New York road and put up a sign saying, “Donated by Israel for poor people.” People would lose their minds.

Yes, we are working very hard to build and expand here. We returned from exile. This is historical justice. Every place you go here, you see our history.

We’re not settlers — we came back to our homeland.

Here, look at this — an illegal neighborhood, and people moved in.

Ari: They just put up a UN sign.

Israel: Exactly. “Support Palestine.” “At risk for forced transfer.” Funded by the European Union. Ireland, Belgium, Luxembourg — you name it.

Ari: Are they really getting money from all these global NGOs for illegal building?

Israel: Yes. In Area C.

Ari: When I was being driven around, my guide pointed out: “This village is funded by this UN body, that one by the EU...”

They’re just funding Arab villages to build illegal settlements.

Israel: Yes. Area A and B only cover around 20 percent of their population. They have enough room to build there. But they build on our roads in Area C. It’s not random — it’s war.

Just like Gaza: instead of hospitals and infrastructure, they build caravans on our land. That’s the situation. I have more meetings waiting for me.

Ari: Are they just trying to rush now and grab as much land as they can?

Israel: 100 percent. For 10 years.

I’ll send you a video — please translate it. A PA leader from 2009 says clearly: “We will build illegally in Area C. No one will stop us.” He even publishes annual reports of their illegal work.

He has 600 employees working in Area C — illegally — under his office. Yes, they’re working hard. And we must work harder to apply Israeli sovereignty. It’s the only way to stop the terror.

Ari: I spoke to some Knesset members, like Simcha Rothman, who said it’s time to formally recognize that sovereignty. How close is Israel to doing that?

Israel: That’s a difficult question.

We just opened the Knesset session. There are many issues — especially with Iran.

But I can tell you: we will work hard to try to make it happen in this government’s term. I don’t know if we’ll succeed, but we’ll try.