Yuli Novak, director of the Israeli human rights group B'Tselem, describes Israel's actions in Gaza and the West Bank as part of a long-term project to eliminate Palestinians. She says the lack of international intervention has created a sense of impunity, allowing what she calls genocide in Gaza to continue.
B'Tselem's Tel Aviv office has no signs on the door, a precaution against threats to the group. Novak, who previously led Shovrim Shtiká and has been targeted by government smear campaigns, now heads one of Israel's most scrutinized NGOs. She describes a country where defending human rights can put activists at risk and the government is growing more authoritarian. Information from OCHA, between the start of the ceasefire on 10 October 2025 and 11 September 2026, there were 1,358 deaths and 4,541 injuries in Gaza, a toll that points to continued violence despite the truce.
Novak says the problem extends beyond Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. She points to a government dominated by hardline right-wing parties and pursuing an ideology that, in her view, has long aimed to erase the Palestinian people. She traces this logic back to 1948, from the Nakba to the current destruction in Gaza.
Information from Novak, the events of October 7 gave the government an excuse to accelerate its agenda of Jewish supremacy and ethnic cleansing, alongside colonization. She rejects the idea that violence in the West Bank is simply the work of rogue settlers, saying the state arms and trains these groups, which act without consequences. She notes that public discourse now centers on the idea of total victory, meaning the elimination of the other side as a condition for security.
B'Tselem calls what is happening in Gaza genocide and describes the West Bank as undergoing a slower but intentional process of elimination. Novak says the Israeli system depends on the participation of hundreds of thousands, especially soldiers, while society is saturated with incitement and the dehumanization of Palestinians. She believes most Israelis are personally and economically invested in this project, making internal change unlikely for now. B'Tselem's latest report, as cited by independent media, says Israeli forces killed 1,107 Palestinians in the West Bank between 7 October 2023 and 31 August 2026, including 245 children. The organization frames these actions as part of a unified political project, with violence and displacement, alongside economic suffocation, accelerating since late 2022 and the outbreak of the Gaza war in October 2023.
Novak compares Israel with other societies that have committed atrocities, arguing that no nation recognizes its own crimes as they happen. She warns that nearly every Israeli household has a direct connection to the military, reinforcing a collective blindness that keeps the system of apartheid in place.
Novak worries that the current government could be re-elected. She describes its members as extremists, some even fascist or sadistic, and sees little hope in the political alternatives, which she says differ in style but not substance. Even a change in leadership, she argues, would likely bring a more palatable version of apartheid, not a real break from destructive policies.
Novak doubts that recent sanctions on settlement products by the UK and France, along with Canada, will have much effect. She calls them a small step, but says they are not enough. In her view, real change will require sustained public pressure, as governments are reluctant to challenge Israel's system directly. She compares this with local efforts elsewhere, such as Barcelona's targeted mental health measures reported earlier, where local action tries to fill gaps left by slow-moving institutions.
Novak's path, from her background in the Zionist left to her current position, reflects broader disillusionment with the idea of Jewish supremacy. She acknowledges the personal cost, including lost friendships, but says the fight for equality and human rights is not negotiable. She still believes political change is possible, though history suggests it will come only after a long struggle and suffering.
Novak's account indicts both Israeli policy and international inaction. The evidence she presents points to a system built for exclusion and domination, sustained by broad participation and the world's unwillingness to intervene. As B'Tselem faces the threat of being outlawed, civil society in Israel faces growing pressure. Novak warns that the world's silence is more than a failure of solidarity: it helps injustice continue.
