Media silence on Kabylie denounced by an Israeli Think Tank

As Kabylie faces renewed wildfires in July 2026, the rapprochement between the Kabyle independence movement and a segment of the Israeli political and intellectual establishment is accelerating. Think tanks (JISS), Knesset parliamentarians, the Israeli press, and even a direct appeal from Ferhat Mehenni to the State of Israel highlight this trend.

This article examines, point by point, who supports the Kabyle cause in Israel, why, and what can be independently verified behind these stances.

You will also find the perspective of the Israeli think tank Human Face, alongside the full text of Mehenni’s appeal to the international community.

Media silence on Kabylie denounced by an israeli think tank born from October 7

Human Face was founded by Mikhael Nabeth, a sociologist by training who has lived in Israel for about twenty years. He created the think tank in the wake of the October 7, 2023 massacres, with the initial mission of documenting and raising awareness of the reality experienced by Israelis since the Hamas attacks. It is an extension of this work that Nabeth is now applying to the situation in Kabylie.

For him, the lack of international media coverage of the region is no accident: “Kabylie is being ravaged by wildfires, without the slightest intervention from Algeria, and without any media relay because the plunder of resources, colonization, and self-determination constitute a locked-in emotional capital serving Palestinian victimhood.”

This narrative, which blames both the inaction of the Algerian authorities and the disproportionate space occupied by other regional causes on the international media agenda, summarizes the central argument of those supporting the Kabyle cause: the region suffers from a form of invisibilization that deprives it of international solidarity precisely when it needs it most. This assertion remains a committed political stance rather than a consensual finding.

A historical narrative mobilized by a section of the Kabyle Movement

Some Kabyle activists and sympathizers place recurring waves of wildfires within a long-term historical framework: they see them as a repetition of what they present as the “incendiary conquest” of the Arab Banu Hilal tribes, who invaded Berber North Africa in the eleventh century—a period to which certain accounts, including historical ones, associate the use of fire as a weapon of conquest and destruction of cultivated lands.

This parallel, widely disseminated in Kabyle identity and independence discourse, frames the fires as a symbol of continuity between ancient Arab domination and the current Algerian state, perceived by its opponents as its direct heir. However, this is a political and memorial interpretation driven by a segment of the Kabyle movement, rather than an established factual explanation for contemporary fires, whose origins—whether climatic, accidental, or intentional—have not been determined by an independent investigation.

Recognition built step by step

Since the symbolic proclamation of Kabylie’s independence by the Movement for the Self-Determination of Kabylie (MAK) on December 14, 2025, in Paris, several Israeli figures have publicly taken a stance in favor of recognizing Kabylie.

• The Jerusalem Institute for Strategy and Security (JISS), an influential think tank, published an analysis urging Israel to move beyond its “wait-and-see reserve” to provide principled political support for the Kabyle people’s right to self-determination, which could potentially evolve into formal recognition.
• Dr. Emmanuel Navon, an international relations specialist, defended a similar position, arguing that Israel should position itself as a supporter of non-violent national liberation movements in the Middle East and North Africa.
• Amit Halevi Illouz, a Knesset member, submitted a proposal to study the recognition of Kabyle independence, presenting Kabylie as an ally of Morocco against Algeria, which he described as part of the “Iranian axis of evil.” He also claimed that the Kabyle people demonstrated in support of Israelis after October 7, 2023, rather than in support of Hamas—an assertion reflecting his own political alignment rather than verified sociological consensus across the entire Kabyle population.

A rapprochement cultivated over years by Ferhat Mehenni

Ferhat Mehenni, President of the Kabyle Government in Exile and founder of the MAK, has cultivated this rapprochement for over a decade, visiting Israel as early as 2012 and granting several interviews to the Israeli press, notably The Times of Israel. In them, he presents support for Israel as a “moral position” of the Kabyle movement stemming from a rejection of terrorism and discrimination, and cites the model of Israeli state-building as a source of inspiration for a future Kabyle state.

The MAK has also highlighted pro-Israel demonstrations organized in Kabylie following October 7, 2023, as well as an anti-Semitism rally in Paris in January 2025 initiated by the Kabyle League for Human Rights.

Certain Israeli commentators frame this rapprochement as a strategic opportunity: an article published on the JForum website describes Kabylie as a potential Israeli ally in the Arab world, emphasizing that a portion of the Kabyle population identifies with the Israeli narrative of a non-Arab minority aspiring to self-determination in a hostile environment.

Facing wildfires, israeli support highlighted by Kabyle activists

Beyond the diplomatic and political support mentioned, advocates for the Kabyle cause now point to Israel as one of the few international actors willing to respond concretely to the wildfire emergency. This is explicitly the approach taken by Ferhat Mehenni, who issued a direct appeal to the State of Israel, alongside Morocco, France, the United States, and the European Union, for aerial and humanitarian assistance to combat the fires striking the country and the Kabyle nation. For MAK supporters, this gesture illustrates the coherence of the Kabyle-Israeli rapprochement: where Algeria is seen as failing, Israel is presented as a capable and willing potential partner.

However, this framing remains specific to supporters of the Kabyle movement. The Algerian authorities categorically reject any narrative of an “occupation” or “colonization” of Kabylie.

What can be said with certainty

• The support of Israeli officials and think tanks (JISS, Dr. Emmanuel Navon, Knesset member Amit Halevi Illouz) for the recognition of Kabyle independence is real and publicly documented.
• Ferhat Mehenni and the MAK have displayed an assumed rapprochement with Israel for over a decade, relayed by the Israeli press itself, and explicitly requested Israeli aid in response to the 2026 wildfires.
• The theory that the Kabyle cause is deliberately omitted from the international media agenda in favor of other regional causes is advanced by Kabyle movement supporters, not an independently established fact.
• The parallel drawn by some Kabyle activists between current fires and the medieval “incendiary conquest” of the Banu Hilal belongs to an identity-based and memorial narrative.

Appendix: Ferhat Mehenni’s appeal to the international community, including Israel

On July 20, 2026, Ferhat Mehenni published an appeal requesting an intervention by Israel alongside Morocco, France, the United States, and the European Union—a new sign of this rapprochement. This political declaration reflects the author’s viewpoint, particularly regarding his allegations that Algerian security services played a role in sparking the fires in Kabylie.

Urgent appeal to the demcracies of the world

I, Ferhat Mehenni, President of the Kabyle Government in Exile,

• Facing the extreme severity of the wildfires currently ravaging Kabylie;
• Facing the manifest and deeply concerning absence of an adequate response from the Algerian authorities;
• Facing the imminent risk of widespread conflagration threatening entire villages and the lives of thousands of Kabyle citizens;
• Facing the danger of a major ecological disaster amounting to ecocide, with potentially dramatic human consequences;
• Facing the risk of a mass exodus of the Kabyle people, already underway due to the Algerian state’s policy of occupying Kabyle lands;
• Facing, finally, recurrent elements that, in my view, implicate the past and present involvement of certain Algerian services in triggering these fires;

I issue an urgent and solemn appeal to the international community.

I call upon all states possessing the technical, logistical, and aerial means necessary to intervene effectively against these wildfires, in order to assist the distressed Kabyle populations.

I direct this appeal more particularly to the Kingdom of Morocco, the State of Israel, France, the United States of America, and the European Union, urging them to mobilize, as swiftly as possible, humanitarian, technical, and aerial assistance to help contain and extinguish the fires devastating Kabylie.

This is a matter of protecting human lives, preserving a territory, and safeguarding an invaluable natural, historical, and cultural heritage.

I also call upon competent international organizations and governments committed to the universal values of solidarity, the protection of civilian populations, and environmental defense to act without delay to prevent an irreversible human and ecological tragedy from unfolding in a culpable silence.

— Ferhat Mehenni, President of the Kabyle Government in Exile

Frequently Asked Questions

• Why does Israel support Kabyle independence? A section of the Israeli political and intellectual establishment (the JISS think tank, researcher Emmanuel Navon, Knesset member Amit Halevi Illouz) presents this support as consistent with a doctrine of backing non-violent national liberation movements, and as a strategic lever against Algeria—an ally of the Polisario and opponent of Morocco, which is an Israeli partner under the Abraham Accords.
• Who is Mikhael Nabeth? A sociologist by training who has lived in Israel for about twenty years, he founded the Human Face think tank in the aftermath of the October 7, 2023 massacres. He now extends his focus to the Kabyle situation, which he believes is rendered invisible by international media.
• Has Ferhat Mehenni obtained official support from Israel? To date, Israel has not formally recognized Kabylie’s independence. Documented support stems from think tanks, commentators, and an isolated Knesset member, rather than an official government decision.
• What is Ferhat Mehenni asking of Israel regarding the 2026 fires? In his July 20, 2026 appeal, he requests humanitarian, technical, and aerial assistance to help contain the fires affecting Kabylie, alongside Morocco, France, the United States, and the European Union.