"Israel should not expect its work to be done by others, only it can strike the noose that closes on it," said Maj. Gen. Aharon Yariv, head of Military Intelligence during the Six-Day War.
The three weeks leading up to June 5, 1967 are preserved in our national memory as the "waiting period." Those were long days, when Arab armies gathered around the country and threatened to throw us into the sea. That summer, tens of thousands of reservists were recruited, who left their families and fields and waited very anxiously for the "red sheet" order. For the first and only time in Israel's history, mothers demonstrated for soldiers to go to war.
Ambassador Erdan attacks UN Secretary General for Security Council remarks: "He must resign today!" // Photo: Dor Malul
At the same time, in the pit, General Staff generals attacked Israeli Prime Minister Levi Eshkol, claiming that every day of waiting endangers the security and existence of the State of Israel. Eshkol, who frightened the people with his stuttering messages, insisted on waiting until he could convince the Americans that this was a "war of no choice."
Gun on the table
The 2023 waiting period enters its third week. It is reminiscent of that of the Six-Day War. Once again, the reserves are being mobilized en masse, the economy is slowing and the fields are abandoned. Once again, the people look up to the leadership and wait for an order of action. Again the leadership hesitates and stutters. But the central and truly essential comparison between the periods must focus on the need to maintain national resilience, on the belief in the justness of our existence, and on the insistence on significant deterrence.
The 2023 waiting period enters its third week, soldiers near the Gaza Strip, Photo: AP
Today, in their consultations with Israeli decision-makers, the Americans often mention their experience in another war. Not the Six Day War, but the Iraq War. More specifically, two battles in Iraq – Fallujah in 2004 and Mosul in 2017. In the first battle, American forces entered massively, suffering heavy casualties and killing many civilians before capturing the city.
In the second battle, the Americans deployed special forces on surgical missions and saved lives, but it took them a long time to defeat ISIS. The Americans ask us: Wouldn't it be better for the IDF to choose the Mosul scenario? Our answer must be unequivocally "no."
It is inconceivable to call 360,<> reservists to the flag and send them home as they came. This would be a fatal blow to the morale of the front, and no less so to the morale of the home front. The reservists left their lives, families and jobs behind, and day by day the erosion of waiting seeps in.
Israel, along with the United States, put the gun on the table, the air force attack on the Gaza Strip, photo: AFP.
Israel, along with the United States, put a gun on the table. Israeli reservists alongside American forces sent to the Middle East. Once this gun is pulled, the lack of pulling the trigger sends an unequivocal message of weakness, fear and hesitation. This silence is intensified by the cry of the people who want to go to war for their homes. Not pulling the trigger is a blow to our deterrent power. Only after a ground incursion, substantive combat and a thorough cleaning of the terrorist infrastructure will we be able to restore confidence in our deterrent power and instill hope for peace with neighbors who are not one big terrorist base.
Most importantly, if we do not enter into warfare in a "false" manner now, we risk taking the first step towards dismantling the social contract between the people and the state. In order to rehabilitate it, we must first prove the justice of Israel's existence as a safe state for all its citizens. Only then will we be able to renew trust and confidence in state institutions.
We must prove the justice of Israel's existence as a safe state for all its citizens, the destruction in Bari, photo: AFP
Since the outbreak of the war, I have been interviewed around the world and see the shift from empathy for Israel to criticism of its actions in Gaza. This was evident last night when the UN secretary-general claimed in his shameful speech that, in fact, Israel bears some of the responsibility for Hamas' barbaric attack. The grace time given to us by the international community for military action is running out. We have to pull the trigger, and nicely one hour earlier.
In creating a meaningful and valuable comparison, we must go back to our origins in the Six-Day War, and not necessarily rely on the American comparison to Iraq. In fact, our goal is the same as that of Levi Eshkol at the time – to convince the Americans and the entire world that we are in a "war of no choice." As in 1967, the IDF will have to act with full force and strength in order to maintain national resilience, deterrence and the right of the State of Israel to exist.
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