The Last Phase of the Collapse of Zionism: Ilan Pappé's Case for the End of the Zionist Project

Israeli historian Ilan Pappé, a leading figure among the so-called "New Historians" who have challenged Israel's founding narratives, has argued in recent years that the Zionist project in Palestine has entered what he calls its last phase. His essay The Collapse of Zionism, published in New Left Review's Sidecar in June 2024, and elaborated further in subsequent interviews, lays out the case that more than 120 years after its inception, the structures sustaining Zionism as a state project are beginning to give way.

Pappé's Central Argument
Pappé frames his analysis around a historical observation: states collapse for varied reasons, whether external attack, prolonged civil conflict, or the gradual breakdown of public institutions, often slowly at first before accelerating rapidly. He argues that the indicators of such a process are, in his words, clearer than ever in the case of Israel, and contends that what is unfolding is the early stage of a historical process that will culminate in the downfall of Zionism as a state project.

Why Pappé Calls This the "Last Phase"

In later interviews building on the essay, Pappé describes the present moment specifically as the last phase of Zionism, distinguishing it from earlier periods of crisis the movement has weathered. He attributes this to what he terms Neo-Zionism, an intensified version of the original ideology that seeks rapid and complete territorial control over historical Palestine, in contrast to classical Zionism's more gradual approach to statehood.

He likens this intensification to a broader global pattern of populist politics, arguing that populist leadership tends to be administratively incompetent and accelerates systemic breakdown rather than consolidating power. In his framing, intensification of this kind typically precedes collapse rather than preventing it.

The Five Indicators
Pappé identifies several converging factors he sees as evidence of this last phase. The first is a fracturing of Israeli Jewish society itself, which he divides into two competing visions: a more secular, liberal "State of Israel" associated with the country's founding generation, and a more religious-nationalist "State of Judea," whose influence within the military and security establishment he argues is growing and which favors full territorial control over historical Palestine.

He further points to the long-term failure of the decades-long peace process, which he characterizes as a series of American-Israeli initiatives that Palestinians were merely asked to respond to rather than genuinely negotiate.

Pappé also cites what he frames as rising international isolation, arguing that global civil society increasingly regards Israel as a pariah state even where political elites continue to offer support, and notes shifting attitudes among younger Jewish communities abroad, including a cited Brookings Institution finding of declining support for Israel among young American evangelicals between 2018 and 2021.

What Pappé Sees Coming Next
Pappé is careful to note that the collapse of a state project does not automatically produce a better outcome, pointing to the protracted and often bloody aftermaths of state breakdown elsewhere in the region, including Syria, Yemen and Libya. He frames the alternative he hopes for as a process of decolonization, arguing that only Palestinian agency can determine whether what follows improves upon the current condition. Despite describing the present as, in his words, a very dark moment, he points to growing global shows of solidarity with Palestinians as a source of hope for what might follow this last phase.

Reception and Counterarguments
Pappé's thesis has been embraced by parts of the pro-Palestinian and academic left as a serious historical diagnosis, but it remains a contested position rather than a scholarly consensus. Critics, including many mainstream historians and Israeli commentators, argue that predictions of Israel's collapse have circulated periodically for decades without materializing, and that Israel's economic, military and technological strength, alongside continued strategic backing from the United States and other Western governments, makes near-term state collapse unlikely.

Others note that Pappé, a long-standing critic of Zionism who relocated from Israel to the United Kingdom partly over disagreements with his former institution, brings a strong ideological lens to his analysis, and that his framework may understate Israeli society's historical capacity to absorb internal divisions and external pressure. Whether the present period genuinely constitutes a terminal "last phase," or a more cyclical period of crisis Israel has weathered before, remains unresolved among scholars of the region.

Mustapha Bature Sallama.
Medical/ Science Communicator,
Private Investigator, Criminal investigation and Intelligence Analysis.

International Conflict Management and Peace Building.USIP

mustysallama@gmail.com
+233-555-275-880
References
Al Jazeera, "Israeli historian says Zionism entering its 'last phase'," January 14, 2025, https://www.aljazeera.com/video/newsfeed/2025/1/14/israeli-historian-says-zionism-entering-its-last

SuperHumanizer, "The Last Phase of Zionism: Ilan Pappé on Why Israel's Current Crisis Signals the End."

New Left Review/Sidecar, "Ilan Pappé, The Collapse of Zionism," June 21, 2024, https://newleftreview.org/sidecar/posts/the-collapse-of-zionism

Links International Journal of Socialist Renewal, "Ilan Pappé: The collapse of Zionism," June 2024, https://links.org.au/ilan-pappe-collapse-zionism

SuperHumanizer, "The Last Phase of Zionism: Ilan Pappé on Why Israel's Current Crisis Signals the End."

Meaning in History (Substack), "Ilan Pappe, the collapse of Zionism."

Video discussion shared via Facebook, https://www.facebook.com/share/v/1APdY21tMd/

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