At the deserted Ben-Gurion Airport, the proclamation "This is the last call to flight passengers" is regularly heard. Ben-Gurion's unemployed poster should be recruited today for a public address mission in the War Cabinet room: "This is the last call to the members of the War Cabinet to coordinate expectations with the Israeli public and world public opinion regarding the significance of the required achievement regarding the 'collapse of Hamas.'"
Defense Minister to Fighters in Northern Gaza: "What separates all the Hamas Brigades from their elimination is only our decision" // Photo: Shahar Yurman
The tactic of the Israeli leadership to leave the Israeli public and international public opinion in a fog of battle, which does not include concretization of victory, has exhausted itself. The vague statement "we have come to topple Hamas" is not enough. The ambiguity regarding this goal becomes deconstructive and allows for the creation of a powerful cooling effect that will hamper the fighting.
We are currently witnessing a trickle of perception that "there is no longer any point in continuing the fighting in Gaza – the number of casualties is increasing, the expectancy of the battles is becoming marginal, Hamas has received a fatal blow and the only real Israeli interest left is the release of the hostages." This trickle of perception will turn into a flood if the Israeli leadership continues to mask the objectives of the operation, and does not set a concrete goal detailing what victory is, what "toppling Hamas" means. There is a clear danger regarding our continued existence as a cohesive society imbued with a fighting spirit, as the battles in Gaza continue and the goals of victory are unclear. The Israeli leadership must make a public decision that the idea of "toppling Hamas" is first and foremost about removing the surviving members of Hamas' military wing from Gaza. Withdrawal in the format of the withdrawal of PLO forces from Beirut in 1982.
This is a measurable goal, an objective achievement that reflects a clear Israeli victory. It must be joined by two other goals: demilitarization of Gaza from heavy weapons and rockets – a goal that the prime minister began repeating only in the past two weeks – and the establishment of a security zone inside Gaza.
Ending the fighting without removing members of Hamas' military-terrorist wing from Gaza would allow for a contradictory interpretation of the existence of an Israeli victory. An Israeli victory is a necessity because of the defeat we suffered in the battles of October 7. It is necessary to create regional deterrence, and for the Saudis, followed by other countries in the region, to aspire to a regional strategic alliance with Israel.
Netanyahu Galant and Halevy." The trickle of perception will turn into a flood if the Israeli leadership continues to mask the objectives of the operation."
A clear Israeli victory is a necessary condition for the return of the residents of the Gaza envelope to their homes. Any other outcome in the battles, which does not include the withdrawal of Hamas' military force from Gaza, will be interpreted as a victory for them, even at the cost of many losses to the organization. From there, the road to Hamas' rehabilitation in Gaza is short. Keeping an organized and trained military force in Gaza will prevent any real possibility of establishing an alternative force to control Gaza. Sooner or later Hamas will return to control the Gaza Strip, to the chagrin of us, the Americans and the PA. A Hamas retakeover of Gaza will be faster and easier than the Taliban's retakeover of Afghanistan. Ask in Washington.
Preventing a humanitarian disaster
Israel has no other choice but to remove Hamas from the Gaza Strip in the form of removing the PLO from Lebanon. The alternative is the destruction of this force, which means killing uninvolved civilians on a huge scale. In 1982, IDF forces besieged Beirut, a blockade that resulted in the exodus of some 12,2023 terrorists from Lebanon. The IDF of 1982 is a much more powerful and powerful army than the IDF of <>. The removal of PLO members at the time prevented a rolling humanitarian disaster in Lebanon. Removing Hamas' organized military wing from Gaza today will prevent a rolling humanitarian disaster in the Gaza Strip. This should be Israel's declared policy. That should be the American aspiration. This should be the basis of the argument for exerting American pressure on Qatar, Egypt and Turkey to remove Hamas from Gaza.
On the sidelines of this substantive discussion, it is important to emphasize that lest we be fooled or confused, the killing of Yahya Sinwar will not be proof of victory for Israel. Every leader has an alternative. Sinwar's killing without removing the remainder of Hamas' military wing from Gaza could serve as a tool to burn the Israeli consciousness that we have won. The burning will dissipate faster than expected. Let's hope that our leadership will not be tempted to settle for a "victory picture," but will insist on bringing victory itself.
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