The war in Gaza became extra painful this week: the number of dead soldiers, the names, the stories. Another painful reminder of the heavy price we pay for this land, and in this case - for liberation from the shackles of Hamas.
Follow Israel Hayom on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram
For years, Israel has been waging "wars deluxe": It relied on a combination of intelligence and air power to strike the enemy without risking ground forces. Along with strong aerial defense, this allowed for precision blows to the enemy that provided extended periods of calm. However, it was a myth that shattered loudly on October 7: leaders might perhaps be eliminated from the air, but enemies can only be decisively crushed on the ground.
The myth had other related components that will now have to be addressed. The first deals with over-reliance on strong defense. Iron Dome and its counterparts are technological wonders, but they also largely diminish the need to advance on the ground to win. Without them, with many fewer rockets, the IDF would have long ago been deep inside Gaza (or Lebanon), simply because the home front wouldn't have been able to endure the price. The fact that aerial defense provided extraordinary interception rates planted a mistaken notion that the ground operation was unnecessary.
Video: Shoes of the kidnapped Israelis on display / Dor Malul
The second deals with the most basic role of the military: defending the homeland and its citizens. Over the years, the roles have shifted and have remained as such for too long. Civilians had become the shield that spared soldiers the need to advance. This problematic situation manifested itself in the northern border before the Second Lebanon War when civilians worked the fields adjacent to the fence while the IDF took cover behind them.
That war changed the reality in the north, but the reality that existed in the south wasn't any better. For far too many years, the residents of the Gaza border lived under intolerable threats of rockets, demonstrations, noises, and explosive balloons, without the state solving the problem for them. Kibbutzim and settlements repeatedly expressed their willingness to pay any price as long as the problem would be solved once and for all. The state heard but sought band-aid solutions - suitcases of money from Qatar to assuage Hamas; temporary employment programs – which were more like palliatives for a malignant ailment.
Now, Israel needs to fix this. It's a comprehensive, root-level fix that should lead to two significant achievements. The first is the dismantling of Hamas' rule and neutralization of its ability to return and take control in the future. This requires eliminating its leaders, capturing its commanders, damaging its cells, and stripping its legitimacy in the eyes of the world and its own people. Who and what will come after? If Israel plans ahead, a solution might be found. If not, there could be a period of uncertainty known in Islam as jahiliyyah – in which Gaza may become a battlefield of warlords similar to Somalia, necessitating increased Israeli activity. It's a different variation of the idea that formed the basis of Operation "Cast Lead" an aggressive, targeted operation against terror infrastructure, followed by a withdrawal while maintaining strong defense, and then a long-term effort to clear the territory and neutralize enemy capabilities.
The second achievement needed is the full disengagement from Gaza. While Israel formally withdrew in the summer of 2005, Gaza was never truly detached from us. Electricity, fuel, goods, and workers all pass through Israel. It's time to put an end to this. This border needs to be sealed permanently, or at least until Gaza becomes a normal entity and enters into peaceful dialogue with Israel. What happens until then? Goods can come through Egypt. The world can and should demand this minimum from Cairo, under strict supervision to ensure that no weapons or means of warfare enter the Strip.
To achieve these two goals, Israel needs to have an overwhelming victory. Only then can a different reality be shaped in the area. And decision means a tough, determined, and deep battle within the Palestinian territory, which has been preparing for this battle for 15 years with a complex system of tunnels and traps embedded within a civilian population alongside sensitive facilities such as hospitals and UN installations. The IDF won't have to go through every tunnel and pit, but it will have to target the centers of power – people, command structures, and ammunition depots – which will severely undermine Hamas's capabilities and cripple its ability to function. If all this happens while the civilian population rises up against the Islamist rulers, perhaps progress can also be made on the issue of captives, which is currently Hamas' key bargaining chip.
In this war, as of this week, the IDF has the upper hand. Hamas is counting hundreds of dead, including mid-level commanders, and has suffered significant damage to some of its key units. It is far from defeated, but the pressure on it is immense, and it is using all the means at its disposal– from rockets designed to keep the Israeli home front on edge to attempts to target forces on the ground. Over the past few days, it has achieved some successes, but this is part of the cost of war. In previous conflicts, the IDF faced tough days and battles, but it always emerged victorious.
Anyone who thinks that Hamas can be defeated without having it win some battles is divorced from reality. We are facing a cruel and determined enemy, who is currently fighting for its life against a determined and powerful army, many times over. It will take time, there will be more challenging days, but the direction is clear. In order for this to continue, Israel must not falter. It needs to demonstrate determination and courage in Gaza and simultaneously deter elsewhere, especially in the north, to prevent the escalation of the conflict and to allow it to focus on Gaza and the mission it has set for itself: to defeat Hamas.
These are especially challenging days, especially following the horrors and shock of Simchat Torah. But for anyone living here and wanting to continue living here, there's no choice: We must keep a strong upper lip, and move forward. Until victory. Only then will deterrence be restored. Only then will future wars be deterred. Only then will Israel avenge the events of October 7 and ensure that they never happen again.
