The Hummus Trail: How Israeli War Criminals Become Tourists In India
“An Israeli war criminal is visiting India pretending to be a tourist. The Government of India must comply with international law and arrest him,” Dipankar Bhattacharya, the National General Secretary of the Communist Party of India Liberation, said, responding to the complaint filed by the HRF.
By : DC Correspondent
Update: 2026-06-12 09:27 GMT
The Israel Defense Forces comprise overwhelmingly young age groups, from 18 to early 20’s, with the active duty force demographic being highly concentrated in the 18-22 age bracket. After serving in the military, these soldiers are given a ‘hefty bonus’ by the Israeli government, which most use to travel abroad, India being the people’s favourite.
Almost 80,000 Israeli soldiers come to India every year for ‘vacation’ after participating in a globally funded genocide against Palestine. They travel through what is now known as The Hummus Trail, which is a nod to the term ‘hippie trail’ of the 70’s and 80’s, also known for its eccentric drug culture. It should be no surprise that it is also called ‘The Hash or Hashish Trail’ due to the widely known high consumption of recreational drugs by Israeli soldiers.
The Hummus Trail starts from the Union Territory of Leh and Ladakh, moves further to Kasol, Bhaghshu, Dharamkot, Tosh, and Kullu in the Parvati valley of Himachal Pradesh. It also includes remote areas like Kalga, Pulga and Talga, which are known for their ‘Israeli settlements’. It connects the Hindu religious places of Mathura and Vrindavan and moves towards Pushkar in Rajasthan. In South India, South Goa and Gokarna are popular for their tropical beaches; the trail also moves to Vattakanal near Kodaikanal in Tamil Nadu.
They are said to come to India to ‘blow off steam’, score high-quality hash, and for India’s stunning natural views. In the last 25 years, India has become a sort of ‘rite of passage’ trip for Israeli soldiers. 80,000 per year is no small number, and it is said to be a number that is only increasing, by the Head of Consulate Affairs for the Israeli Embassy in Delhi, Eli Sneh.
According to an article in the Jerusalem Post, “India is the cheapest option,” a quote from Ye’ra, a 20-year-old Israeli soldier who completed her military service, said.
Another soldier who completed her military service, Ora (23), says, “Going to India has become a ‘goes without saying’ thing. It’s entrenched in Israeli culture,”. Just how deeply does India, which stands for anti-colonialism, want to be entrenched in settler colonialist Israel?
“As an Israeli, it’s easiest to travel in India to meet other Israelis,” she adds. “The way Israelis congregate in every place – it’s not like that with other nations; it’s special, and it’s totally part of the India experience.” This is an alarming statement and makes one question if there is any ‘Indian-ness’ left on the Hummus Trail.
The Head of Consulate Affairs for the Israeli Embassy in Delhi, Eli Sneh, cites the recent development of the first direct flight from Tel Aviv to Delhi being officially established in 2018 by Air India as another major reason for the growing number of Israeli tourists in India. A development that was made easy by the first Prime Minister of India to ever visit Israel, Narendra Modi, in 2017, followed by a consecutive trip in 2018 by Netanyahu to India.
“Israelis find a type of peace here that they don’t find in Israel, in their routine there,” says Michal, 31, a backpacker from Petah Tikva. “Here they feel free to do whatever they want.” [Jerusalem Post]
Freedom to do whatever they want also seems to include consumption of drugs that are illegal in India, disrespecting the locals and culture, and the making of Israeli settlements that do not allow entry to Indians on their own land, which serves as proof of their settler colonialist mindset.
Shai and Sigal Levy, a couple in their 60s from Tel Aviv, have been managing Beit Bina in the northern Indian village of Dharamkot for the past two seasons. The village has become one of the most popular stops on the Humus Trail. “Most of the Israelis in India are here to decompress, especially after their army service,” he says. “There’s something in India that allows for wild freedom, like the Wild West – a sense that they can do whatever they want, be that smoking weed, driving without a license or making noise. This is what they seek here – not self-understanding and not spirituality.”
“Whites-only” is a signboard that should alarm you as an Indian among the numerous local signboards in Hebrew, in Kasol also known as ‘Little Israel’. Imagine a place in India where Indians are denied entry. Well, there’s more.
Kasol is popular for its easy availability of organic marijuana and hash, drugs that are grown in the surrounding mountains. Another place famous for its drugs is Kodaikanal, a hill station in Tamil Nadu; the Vattakanal area has an Israeli colony where Israelis run a mini-industry from guesthouses, travel agents, taxi drivers, food joints, etc. Kodai is known for its ‘magical’ mushrooms or shrooms that are hallucinogenic drugs categorized as a type of psychedelic.
From Hebrew signboards to many restaurants that only serve Israeli cuisine, Pushkar in Rajasthan is where Israelis have a palpable influence.
Throughout the Hummous Trail, there is extensive use of drugs; 90% of Israelis are said to consume drugs and be involved in substance abuse, according to the research article, ‘Decoding the hummus trail of India: regaining the lost prudence’. From them, thousands suffer from ‘flipping-out’ or ‘the post-army India meltdown’, a syndrome so widespread that a Documentary was made – Flipping Out (2008) directed by Yoav Shamir.
India Must Arrest Israeli War Criminal Vacationing in Himachal – CPI(ML)
On the Hummus Trail, currently among many others is Israeli army reservist Eitan Gilboa, against whom the Hind Rajab Foundation has filed a complaint with the Indian authorities accusing him of war crimes in Gaza. The Hind Rajab Foundation is an international organization formed in the memory of five-year- old Hind Rajab, who was murdered after being trapped in a car under gunfire in Gaza by the IDF. An account on which the highly acclaimed, award-winning docudrama ‘The Voice of Hind Rajab’ was made, reconstructing the tragic story by utilizing actual emergency audio recordings between Hind and Red Crescent dispatchers.
“An Israeli war criminal is visiting India pretending to be a tourist. The Government of India must comply with international law and arrest him,” Dipankar Bhattacharya, the National General Secretary of the Communist Party of India Liberation, said, responding to the complaint filed by the HRF.
The Hind Rajab Foundation has submitted a detailed complaint to the Indian Police, the Ministry of Home Affairs and the Bureau of Immigration, calling for Gilboa’s immediate arrest. According to HRF, Gilboa is presently vacationing in Himachal Pradesh, including Old Manali and Gondla Village.
The complaint cites incidents from Khan Younis in January 2024, Rafah in June 2024 and Gaza in July 2024. In Khan Younis, Gilboa and his unit allegedly detonated a residential area while cheering the collapse of buildings. HRF says he was filmed ordering, executing and celebrating demolitions of civilian buildings, with the videos later posted on social media by his mother. The posts, according to HRF, show that the demolitions were carried out as acts of revenge.
HRF has stated that it has submitted geo-located videos, social media material and chain-of-command documentation as part of its investigative dossier.
According to CPI (ML), the presence of an accused Israeli war criminal is a direct test of India’s commitment to international law. India has ratified the Fourth Geneva Convention, and under Article 146, it has an obligation to search for and prosecute persons accused of grave breaches, irrespective of nationality. Article 51(c) of the Indian Constitution also directs the Indian State to foster respect for international law.
(Parts of the above paragraphs are included from ML Update’s article on the same)
The immense and strategic flow of Israeli soldiers post genocidal activities of Palestine in India, in numbers that are said to be increasing, helps us connect the dots between two ideologies that are currently spreading hate and violence globally – Modi’s Hindutva and Netanyahu’s Zionism.
Where is dissent in India?
Many content creators are actively being shadow-banned, leading to the ultimate suspension of their accounts by Meta because they are strong voices of dissent online. The recent case of Shrishti Khanna, whose account with nearly 100,000 followers was abruptly suspended, only came after she posted a blog calling for action against Eitan Gilboa, the Israeli reservist currently vacationing in India. As Instagram suspended the Activist’s account, supporters have linked the move to pro-Palestine advocacy and marginalized communities. Other activists have also claimed that the suspension is not a standalone event but part of a systemic erasure of advocacy for Palestine. Currently, the “Restore Shrishti Khanna’s Account” is trending on Instagram.
It is time for India to take a stand against colonialism yet again, heeding the words of Gazan journalist Bisan Abu Owda, “Indians take care, first it starts with restaurants and towns, then it ends up not your land somehow…”.
This article is written by Hannah Judith Johnson, a student of Tezpur University, interning with Deccan Chronicle.