Geostrategic Media Political Commentary, Analysis, Security, Defense
By Eng. Saleem Al-Batayneh
The words of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during the reception of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi last February were far more than a ceremonial speech. They constituted a dense ideological statement, revealing the contours of a hardline nationalist alliance built on the intersection of Hindu nationalism (Hindutva) and expansionist religious Zionism. This partnership fuses the logics of deterrence and identity, merging Jewish and Hindu visions of space and history into a single, uncompromising worldview.
The alliance exalts ethnic and religious identity, redefining what it means to belong to a nation. Both currents—Hindu nationalism and religious Zionism—frame Muslims as an alien element, a structural threat to their respective nations. This ideological backdrop explains why the Israeli-Indian partnership is not a temporary political convenience but an extension of a shared nationalist vision, deeply rooted in the frameworks of Hindu-Zionist thought.
Netanyahu’s rhetoric was charged with emotional and ideological force. It invoked a Promised Land narrative, recalling the Sindh and Jordan valleys as cradles of civilization. Perhaps most alarming was his reference to the IMEC initiative: a maritime and land corridor linking India, via the Arabian Peninsula, to the port of Haifa and onward to Europe. Analysts argue that this is not merely a commercial plan, but a strategic reconfiguration of Arab geopolitics, placing Israel at the center of supply, energy, and technological networks.
Strategically, Israel seeks through this alliance to reposition itself as a global power extending beyond the Middle East, leveraging India’s status as a declared nuclear power to gain unprecedented geographic depth. India, in turn, views the partnership as part of its regional contest with Pakistan and as a means to strengthen its military position, particularly in the Gulf and broader Arab world.
What most Arab leaders fail to recognize is that historical and contemporary Hindu leaders believe the Arabian Peninsula was once part of a legendary Great Hindu Empire. According to them, the Kaaba was a temple dedicated to Hindu deities such as Rama, built by King Vikramaditya in 58 BCE, and the idols destroyed by Prophet Muhammad were Hindu gods. Even the Zamzam well is claimed to be a sacred Hindu site. They assert that French archaeologists discovered, six years ago, an 8,000-year-old Hindu temple buried under the sands west of Riyadh, implying a historical claim to the spiritual and cultural heart of Islam. This rhetoric signals an ambition to reclaim the Promised Land in a manner echoing the Zionist narrative.
The risks extend to demographics. Political calls have emerged for the permanent settlement of Indian labor—some nine million people—across the Gulf, where they already constitute a significant portion of the population in Saudi Arabia and the UAE. Over the past five years, the Arab workforce has declined sharply; for instance, over half a million Egyptians left Gulf countries, according to the Egyptian Chambers of Commerce.
At the strategic level, the Pakistan issue remains central to the Indo-Israeli alliance. Kashmir has been transformed into a testing ground for applying Israeli-style settlement models, with the aim of altering demographic balances through Hindu settlements. Citizenship laws and national registries have been adjusted in a manner reminiscent of Israeli policies in the West Bank.
In short, a new axis is emerging, stretching from South Asia to the Eastern Mediterranean, reshaping Arab national security. What is unfolding is not merely a territorial conflict; it is a struggle over memory, identity, history, and place. The coming days will remain volatile, sweeping aside old bastions and reshaping political consciousness. The Middle East is now a region primed for instability, its gaps filled with hidden pressures, and the danger is existential for the entire Arab world. This is no longer about a peace agreement signed here or there; it is about the survival of an entire civilization under the banner of securing Israel, even as Arab streets boil and questions multiply unanswered, and crises cascade from one corner of the region to another.
About the Author:
Al-Batayneh was a member of the Jordanian Parliament.
