Netanyahu Is Prolonging the Gaza War and Israel Can't Afford It - Opinion - Haaretz.com
Israel isn't built for long wars. In all its war plans, ever since its inception, the Israel Defense Forces has planned short wars lasting a maximum of a month. The plans always involved a massive mobilization of all reservists, a major push at the beginning of the war and large-scale attacks on all fronts simultaneously, with the goal of breaking the enemy's spirit and bringing about its surrender.
Only a great power that isn't dependent on the rest of the world can afford to wage long wars. The United States can. So can Russia. But a country that is utterly dependent on the rest of the world can't keep fighting for a long time. After all, without arms and ammunition from the U.S., we would have had to resort to fighting with sticks and stones long ago.
- Nancy Pelosi among Democrats urging Biden to halt pending Israel arms sales, condition aid
- The World Central Kitchen debacle happened in a world already suffering 'Israel fatigue'
- What's behind Israel's Rafah operation talk?
We can't afford a long war because the loss of international support is unavoidable. During the first week, the world still remembered the horrors of October 7. But very soon, those heart-wrenching pictures from southern Israel were replaced by heart-wrenching pictures of devastation and dead children in the Gaza Strip, and global opinion reversed itself.
Moreover, the more time passes, the greater the chances of horrifying mistakes like the killing of seven aid workers from World Central Kitchen. And all this turns Israel into an ostracized pariah state at risk of economic and military embargoes, including from the U.S.
Israel also can't afford a long war because of the severe economic damage it causes. The north has been abandoned and shut down for half a year already, and so has the area near the Gaza border. Businesses have closed, buildings have been damaged and 80,000 people are refugees in their own country.
Israeli forces in Gaza.Credit: IDF Spokesperson's Unit
This week, IMTM 2024, an international tourism fair, took place in Tel Aviv. It was depressing. Only 12 countries participated, and they weren't from the top ranks. Two months ago, the Tourism Ministry had predicted that around 50 would come. The tourism industry is flat on its face, and the harm to exports and employment is clear.
We ended the 1967 war in six days, and the economy moved from recession to growth. We ended the Yom Kippur War of 1973 in 19 days, despite being surprised by the attack. The Lebanon War of 1982 was planned as a limited military operation that would last only a few days, but we got bogged down in the Lebanese quagmirefor three years (until we withdrew from all of Lebanon except the Security Zone in its south). And the results were grim – high losses combined with a deep economic crisis caused by hyperinflation.
Israel's very own Neville Chamberlain, aka Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, understands these limitations. Yet despite this, he has done everything he can to extend the war. He waited three weeks before launching the ground operation in Gaza, and then made sure it would take place in stages. First, the troops entered northern Gaza. Only two months later did they enter Khan Yunis. And only two months after that will they enter Rafah (if they ever do).
He adopted this strategy instead of landing an immediate, powerful blow on every front at once – northern, central and southern Gaza – with the goal of shattering Hamas' equilibrium, breaking its fighting spirit and bringing about its rapid surrender. After all, it's nothing more than a small terrorist organization.
Displaced Palestinians moving flour in Rafah on Thursday.Credit: Mohammed Abed/AFP
Our Chamberlain wanted a war that would go nowhere and last forever. It was clear to him that if the war ended within a month, the public would embark on huge demonstrations against him until he was forced to resign (as happened to Prime Minister Golda Meir following the Yom Kippur War).
Consequently, he has done and is still doing everything he can to create as much space as possible between the horrors of October 7 and the next election. He believes that time will blur his personal failure and his supreme responsibility. And meanwhile, he has also activated his poison machine to shift the blame to others – the army, the intelligence community, the Shin Bet security service, the mass protests on the eve of the war, the left, academia, and the courts.
Today, half a year after the massacre, and in light of his failure in running the war, we must oust the most despicable man in the history of the Jewish people.