Current Israel-Palestine Conflict. Demystification of Israel’s might. Sympathizers on both sides caught between a rock and a hard place.
I remember where I was when the news broke of the September 11, 2001, attack on the World Trade Centre in New York City. I could not believe what I was watching on TV. “That’s not possible, right?” I thought to myself. Before the 9/11 attacks, many across the world thought the US was so impregnable. The World’s superpower could not be attacked so openly and so brazenly; such attacks would be stopped in its tracks. 9/11 demystified America’s might. America was just as vulnerable as other countries who did not boast of such power. When I first saw the news of Hamas militants crossing into Israel and gunning down Israeli citizens, I had flashbacks of what I watched on 9/11. I did not believe it. The attack was just as surprising to many Israelis. They did not believe that Hamas could carry out such a bold, and open, and brazen attack on Israel’s territory with little resistance from the Israeli forces in the area. More than 1,000 people were killed on the Israeli side and more than 200 persons taken as hostages. This was unthinkable just a month ago.
What 9/11 did was expose America’s vulnerabilities. It undercut the aura of America’s invincibility. Same thing happened to Israel with the attacks starting on October 7. For decades, Israel has projected this superpower image in the Middle East. Israel prided itself on having the best military, the best intelligence service, Mossad, along with modern weapons capabilities. Israel has one of the best spywares, Pegasus, that was a subject of controversies in Western countries because it was used to spy on Western leaders. In the past, Israel had carried out pre-emptive strikes in Iran, Syria, Lebanon, and other countries. Such strikes were made to proactively protect Israel from attacks. The impression was that Israel could detect potential attacks on its homeland and they would thwart such attacks before they happen. Israel has been high-handed in dealing with Palestinians especially on the Gaza strip. They retaliated rocket attacks from the Gaza strip with ferocious venom. Israel used disproportionate force in dealing with any unrest or protest from Palestinians in the Gaza strip. Israel was unequivocal in showing Hamas and the Palestinians in the Gaza strip and elsewhere the consequences of attacking Israel. It must have thought the fear of what Israel could do in the face of an attack and the perception of the might of the Israel Defence Force (IDF) would prevent anyone from carrying out a brazen and frontal attack on Israel.
Few days after the start of the current crisis, there were revelations from the Egyptian authorities that the Israeli Government was warned about an imminent attack by Hamas from the Gaza strip. Reportedly, Israel downplayed the warning. Israel was said to be more focussed on the West Bank and other fronts than on the Southern border with Gaza. The Israeli Government has denied reports that they received such warning from Egypt.
Israel was warned by Egypt of potential violence three days before Hamas’ deadly cross-border raid, a US congressional panel chairman has said. — Egypt warned Israel days before Hamas struck, US committee chairman says — BBC News
It seems impossible that with the amount and extent of its espionage network in the Middle East and around the world that Israel did not get any kind of warning before the October 7 Hamas attack. After 9/11, there are reports that American intelligence picked up intel about a possible attack. Intelligence and National security failures happened before the 9/11 attacks. In a similar vein, it seems more likely that Israel got info about a possible attack from the Gaza strip. It’s possible that Israel was so confident in the atmosphere of invincibility and terror it has created in the mind of its southern neighbour that it thought such attack was unthinkable. It is also possible that Israel underestimated the capabilities of Hamas before the October 7 attack.
Whatever the case, October 7 and the days were dark days for Israel. Hamas launched thousands of rockets into Israel. Hamas militants on various mobilities breached the barriers separating Israel from the Gaza strip and unleashed terror on Israel. A music festival holding near the border was attacked. More than 200 persons were killed in that festival alone. For hours running into days, Israel was thrown into confusion. The unthinkable was happening. Even as the attacks were unfolding, some thought that it was just a distraction. That the main attack would come from the Hezbollah group in the Northern border. The attack was so shocking that some in Israel could not believe this was Hamas in action. ‘Certainly, this can’t be Hamas, right? This must be bigger than Hamas. Hamas could not attack us like this, or could they?’
It wasn’t just the intelligence failure that allowed such attack to happen that was alarming. As the attack was unfolding, Israel could not carry out a quick, coordinated, and effective response to deal with the Hamas militants who had crossed into Israel. It took days of fighting for the IDF to regain control of all parts of Southern Israel. While the attack was in progress, Israelis who were been attacked in the South were making frantic calls to the Israeli authorities and to their loved ones. ‘Surely, help would come!’ For many that help took too long to come. Israel was so vulnerable in those dark days, that there were fears that other countries who were not friendly to Israel would take advantage of the situation to attack Israel. The US had to warn such countries from doing so.
The current response from Israel with the constant strikes and barrage of attacks against Gaza is not atypical. Israel has always been high-handed in dealing with the Palestinians. Israel does this because they don’t fear repercussions or criticisms. Hardliners in Israel don’t bother about the outcry caused by the destruction in Gaza. They won’t mind the figures from the Ministry of Health in Gaza that nearly 9,500 people have been killed in Gaza since the start of this conflict. Israel has always believed in the use of disproportionate force to quell any uprising from Gaza. No one can call Israel out. The US protects Israel at the UN Security Council. What Israel is doing now is what they’ve always done, and yet October 7 still happened. Unlike the US which is far away from the countries from where 9/11 attack was plotted, Israel shares borders with groups that pose existential threats to its survival. In the past few years, Israel has made progress in making bilateral economic deals with other countries in the Middle East. The current crisis has reversed those gains. Will Israel consider a change in strategy, or would they continue this trajectory of disproportionate attacks on Palestinians? Would the hardliners consider a moderate approach even after the horror of Oct 7 and the days after?
Sympathizers on both sides caught between a rock and a hard place.
In the hours and days after the carnage that started on October 7th, even some strong supporters of the Palestinian cause found it hard to rationalize the brutality and cruelty of the Hamas attack on Israel. Videos of innocent civilians been fired on, grenades been thrown into bomb shelters where Israelis have run to seek shelter, of hundreds of people running helter-skelter from shots been fired at a crowded music festival, and other videos, were hard to watch, much less justify. Yes, one could argue that Hamas is a militant group in charge of the Gaza strip and that it is not representative of all Palestinians in Gaza. Yet, Hamas oversees the Gaza strip. The official Palestinian authority is in the West Bank and have no meaningful control over what happens in Gaza.
Sympathies for the Palestinian cause have been growing across the World. More and more persons are supporting the establishment of an arrangement like the 2-State solution: a Palestinian State and a Jewish State with enforceable clear borders and rights. Videos, images, news stories and documentaries on the plight of Palestinians suffering under the Israeli blockade of the Gaza strip has steered up more support for Palestinians.
Israel has a beleaguered history. The Holocaust did happen. Millions of Jews across Europe were hunted down, imprisoned, and tortured in concentration camps, and marched to their deaths in droves. The horrors of the atrocities committed by Nazi Germany is a fact of history. No one knows more of those atrocities than the Israelis. Many of those who personally witnessed the slaughter ordered by Hitler are late or much advanced in years. Descendants of the survivors of the Holocaust must have heard the stories from their parents and grandparents. Jews have seen pain and destruction, and they are very much aware and conscious of existential threats from those with strong antisemitic views. Seeing the images of the horror committed by Hamas on October 7 and the days after must have reminded them of what their forebears had to endure in the Holocaust.
The Holocaust happened. Jews were killed in their millions during World War II. The World was sympathetic to the plight of the Jews, and many countries gave recognition to the newly formed State of Israel in 1948. Decades have passed since then. Even though there is still the presence and rise of antisemitic sentiments like there was in World War II, Israel is no longer a hapless colony of dispersed migrant Jews who were seeking the creation of a State to call their own. The State of Israel has persisted and flourished despite the constant threat of violence and the actual wars it fought with its strong neighbours like Egypt. Israel is now a powerful force to reckon with in the Middle East.
Decades after the Holocaust, the atrocities of the World War II era are as not as fresh in the minds of people nowadays as it was back then. Apart from people of Jewish heritage and those invested in Jewish history, as more time passes since WW II, the Holocaust will be more of historical commentary in the minds of many non-Jews. The images, pictures and documentaries of the Holocaust are not shown in every news cycle. What is shown on Cable TV and plastered on traditional and social media pages worldwide on a daily or even hourly basis are pictures of the current situation in Palestine.
The Israel of today has grown to be a behemoth. With the support of international partners, Israel can bully its way around much weaker neighbours in the Middle East. Israel has been carrying out illegal blockade of the Gaza strip for years, restricting access of ordinary Palestinians to necessities of daily living. Israel’s actions have met little repercussions or resistance. Israel does what it likes, it can’t be held to account by other countries or the UN.
There are hardliners in Israel with strong nationalistic fervour. The new Government in Israel is strongly leaning in favour of right-wing extremism and tactics. They have sought to increase the power of the executive branch of Government and limit the powers of the judiciary. Those efforts have led to months of protests in the streets of Israel. Some members of the security architecture in Israel joined the protests. There are suggestions that the months of civil unrests in Israel may have created a lacuna for the October 7 attacks to happen. That the Israeli Government and security forces were too distracted by what was happening inside Israel itself and thus took their eyes off what was brewing in the Southern border.
Those who are sympathetic to the cause of Jews in the Middle East wants Israel to succeed in defending itself. Yet even those who support Israel find it hard to defend what Israel is doing currently. Indiscriminate bombing of civilian residences and infrastructures. Cutting off access to electricity and clean water. Attacks on convoys of medical ambulances. Attacks on refugee camps. There is no distinction been made between Hamas fighters and the civilian population in Gaza. Supporters of Israel and even moderate Israelis are wondering what’s going on. Questions are being asked. Israel has used these harsh tactics in the past all in the name of crushing Hamas terrorists, yet Hamas survived and even became stronger than before. Will Israel learn from the past and choose a different approach?
Like the US after 9/11, Israel will struggle to restore the semblance of order that was present prior to October 7. Israel’s vulnerabilities have been tragically exposed. It will be difficult for Israel to restore the once projected image of extraordinary surveillance and espionage capabilities. The Israeli defence has its limits. The concept of overreliance on military might and tactics in favour of more nuanced diplomatic and political solutions will be questioned critically by the average Israeli and supporters of Israel. The path forward is not an easy one for all the parties in this conflict. A humble acceptance of new realities and the need for new directions should be on the table.
In the first few days of this current conflict, there was relative silence on the part of those who usually hold strong views on the Israel-Palestine issue. It took days for some to issue press statements and even then, those statements were guarded and measured. For those sympathetic to the Palestinians, how would they rationalize the killings and atrocities perpetrated by Hamas? For those who care for the survival of Israel as a Nation, how do you urge Israel to show restraint in the face of unprecedented attacks on October 7? Then as the conflicts escalated and Israel threw all cautions to the winds and went all out to attack Gaza, how will supporters of Israel rationalize the destruction and horror that is currently underway in Gaza? Indeed, sympathizers or supporters of the Israel-Palestine debacle have been caught between a rock and a hard place. Support for the Palestinians are growing worldwide, and more persons are urging friends of Israel like the US to prevail on Netanyahu’s Government to apply the brakes. They are calling for immediate ceasefire. Will the Government of Israel listen? It has been said that those who fail to learn from history are doomed to repeating its mistakes.