Hamid Khoshayand – Regional Affairs Expert

In 2026, the Zionist regime has strengthened the doctrine of establishing security zones within the territory of neighboring countries at a distance of 10 to 15 kilometers from its borders; a doctrine that had once been abandoned due to strategic developments but has now been revived, with U.S. support, on a broader scale than before.

According to the latest maps that the Zionist regime has unofficially provided to aid groups in Gaza, a new prohibited zone has been marked with an orange line on the maps, encompassing approximately 11 percent of the territory of the Strip. This new zone, defined beyond the October ceasefire line, has increased the total land under the direct control or operational restriction of the Zionist regime in Gaza to nearly two-thirds (approximately 64 percent) of the total area of the region.

Benjamin Netanyahu, Prime Minister of the Zionist regime, stated in a video message on March 31, emphasizing that “more than half of the Gaza Strip is under Israeli control”: “We are the ones who attack, and we hold the initiative.” Meanwhile, on May 12, 2026, the army of the Zionist regime expanded this zone of influence by an additional 34 square kilometers with the approval of the so-called “Peace Commission” chaired by Trump, and its forces are now deployed along the “orange line.” Palestinian reports indicate that extensive engineering operations to level infrastructure along this line are underway, and analysts believe that the Zionist regime is employing a strategy of creating territorial realities to consolidate its control.

In southern Lebanon as well, the Zionist regime is seeking to impose a new “yellow line” which, according to reports from Lebanese officials, has brought as many as 68 villages under occupation. According to a map published by the regime’s army on April 19, 2026, this buffer zone extends in some areas to the Litani River and a distance of 30 kilometers from the international border. The Minister of War of the Zionist regime, emphasizing that southern Lebanon is like Gaza, has spoken of the widespread destruction of infrastructure and the forced displacement of residents in order to clear the security zone, to the extent that the city of Bint Jbeil has now become a ruin similar to Gaza. This situation has effectively challenged Lebanon’s national sovereignty and has created a continuous strip of occupied territory aimed at pushing back anti-tank missile fire.

In Syria, the Zionist regime has also taken unprecedented advances by exploiting the fall of Bashar al-Assad’s government in December 2024. The regime not only violated the United Nations buffer zone in the Golan (under the 1974 agreement), but also seized 350 square kilometers of Syrian territory within less than 48 hours after Assad’s fall. Between August 2025 and May 2026, at least 1,672 border violations were recorded, and nine new military bases were established on Syrian soil. In this regard, the approval of a $334 million plan for the development of Golan settlements in April 2026 carries a clear message: the Zionist regime considers the Golan to belong to it permanently. This is despite the fact that the International Court of Justice has deemed the construction of these settlements illegal. Syria’s current leadership, grappling with the challenges of the transitional period, is demanding withdrawal, but Tel Aviv, relying on military power, rejects any agreement.

In the West Bank as well, the process of de facto annexation has accelerated significantly. In February 2026, the cabinet of the Zionist regime approved, for the first time since 1967, the registration of vast areas of the West Bank as state land. This decision, together with the repeal of a Jordanian-era law that prohibited the sale of land to settlers, has effectively removed the legal obstacles to settlement expansion. The United Nations and the Security Council have described these measures as gradual and actual annexation. The International Chamber of Commerce has also stated that these settlements and the occupied Golan have been established in clear violation of international law and Security Council resolutions.

These extensive measures to redefine borders have prompted international reactions. The Arab League, the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, and 18 other countries, in a joint statement, condemned these actions and described them as unacceptable de facto annexation and a clear violation of international law. The International Court of Justice has also emphasized in its latest advisory opinions that the continued occupation of Palestine and the construction of settlements therein constitute a violation of Article 49 of the Fourth Geneva Convention and that some actions of the Zionist regime constitute apartheid and racial segregation. Nevertheless, it appears that the Zionist regime, aware of the multiple global crises and the involvement of major powers elsewhere, is exploiting the inattention of the international community to advance its expansionist plans.

What has been taking place in recent months cannot be regarded merely as temporary events and purely security-driven reactions; rather, it represents a broader plan to permanently alter the geometry of power and borders in the region. The gradual but continuous changes in territorial control, from Gaza and the West Bank to southern Lebanon and the Golan Heights, indicate an organized effort to create new realities on the ground.

In the absence of an effective and immediate regional and international response, these changes will become permanent realities, making the restoration of previous borders extremely difficult and perhaps impossible. Therefore, the international community, and particularly the countries of the region and the Muslim world, require a more precise understanding of the dimensions of these developments. Inattention or limited and delayed reactions to these trends will not only embolden the Zionist regime in consolidating its occupation, but will also pave the way for the emergence of new and dangerous dynamics that will confront the long-term security and stability of the region and the Islamic world with unprecedented challenges.

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