Presentation short abstract

Our presentation seeks to reconcile two often-fractured understandings of Israeli settler colonialism: its intrinsic drive for elimination and ethnic cleansing of Palestinians and its ongoing expansionist strategy which fosters dependency and ensures its gradual integration in the region.

Presentation long abstract

Our presentation seeks to reconcile two often-fractured understandings of Israeli settler colonialism: its intrinsic drive for elimination and ethnic cleansing of Palestinians, and its ongoing expansionist strategy, which fosters dependency and ultimately ensures its gradual integration within the broader region. Using the water-energy infrastructural nexus in Jordan as a focal point, the presentation introduces a new analytical framework centered on three pillars—settler-colonial power, Washington-led international interventionism, and regional diplomacy. It argues that taken together these enable Israel to extend its colonial project beyond territorial borders, and to capture more far-flung territories and populations through energy and water infrastructure deals, thereby reshaping regional power dynamics in ways that have been underexplored in prior scholarship. The study is based on an examination of three intertwined infrastructural projects: the water arrangements established under the 1994 Wadi Araba Peace Agreement, the 2014-16 Israeli-Jordanian gas deals, and the 2021 so-called Prosperity Project.