LOS ANGELES.–Four weeks into his latest war with Hamas, 74-year-old Israeli Prime Minister
Benjamin Netanyahu is back in the hot seat, justifying a war to wipe out Hamas for its Oct. 7 Nazi-like massacre of Israeli civilians. Netanyahu knows that he’s running out of time in the court of public opinion. Horrific as the attacks were, reminding many Israelis of the Holocaust, terrorist attacks are a fact of life in Israel and around the globe. Netanyahu knows that Israel has lived through many gruesome attacks from Hamas and other terrorist groups, suicide bombings, beheadings, everything imaginable. Comparing Oct. 7 to Sept. 11, Netanyahu knows that former President George W. Budh didn’t go ape on various targets at his disposal, but carefully picked his battles, choosing to topple Baghdad in 2003. Whether that was a costly mistake or no, the U.S. had to lick its wounds from Sept. 11 and move on.
When it comes to Hamas, Netanyahu knows he faces and implacable enemy, hell-bent on destroying Israel, but, realistically, without the means of doing so. While the Oct. 7 slaughter and hostage-taking were an ugly reminder, Netanyahu must admit, like the U.S. after Sept. 11, that intel and law enforcement failures contributed to the events. Netanyahu knows that all the Israeli settlements near the Gaza border required permanent IDF forces .to protect Kibbutzes and certainly entertainment events, like the Nova Music Festival. Like Sept. 11, had U.S. airports had better transportation security at the time, Osama bin Ladne’s unthinkable attacks on the World Trade Center and Pentagon could have been avoided. While hindsight is always 20/20, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. Better intel and more law enforcement are known to intercept violence before it occurs.
However long the Gaza War goes on, it’s not in Israel’s interest to do too much damage to the over-crowded, dilapidated Mediterranean enclave. Netanyahu knows that Hamas buries itself in the civilian population, making it impossible to root it out completely. But destroying at least some of the underground tunnel network, especially parts that cross into Israel, Netanyahu can improve the security apparatus near the Gaza border. Israeli officials don’t have much more time before world opinion hits a crescendo doing the exact opposite of what’s good for Israel. Israel needs to end Hamas’ propaganda war that Israel commits genocide with its bombing on Palestinian children. As President Joe Biden said, no one can trust the Hamas Ministry of Health busy exaggerating civilian casualties, especially children. Israeli Defense Forces [IDF] make every effort to avoid collateral damage.
Whatever happened on Oct. 7, Nettanyahu must keep focused on Hamas, until it’s no longer feasible to continue the Gaza military operation. Past wars with Hamas proved a mission impossible because Hamas terrorists are part of the Palestinian population. U.S. officials after Sept. 11 did everything possible to track down Bin Landen’s programmed assassins but eventually had to fortify U.S. intel and defenses to prevent another major attack. No matter how many terrorist were plucked off Afghanistan’s battlefields, it didn’t scratch the surface in stopping Islamic terrorism. Bush-43 eventually pivoted to Iraq, a bitter lesson for Netanyahu to remember. Toppling Saddam Hussein’s government an prosecuting the Iraq War cost the U.S. about $3 trillion, creating massive federal budget deficits and national debt, all because Bush-43 couldn’t neutralized Osama bin Laden.
So when Netanyahu considers the repercussions of the Gaza War, he must cut his losses at some point. Fears of a wider escalation prompted the White House to warn Israel that the war can’t go on indefinitely. Public opinion, while sympathetic to Israel initially, has now boomeranged. Media reports are consumed with civilian casualties, especially children, prompting condemnations around the globe. Netanyahu must look at the big picture, improve intel, harden defenses and plan for the future. Hamas won’t change its stripes, as Hamas officials said today. They will keep striking Israel until it destroys the Jewish State. Hamas knows it can destroy Israel but continue the propaganda war of how Israel stole all Palestinian land, when, in fact, Palestininas never had had sovereign territory in the Holy Land. Israel’s booming success amplifies Palestinians’ failures.
No matter how long Israel takes to get over Oct. 7, Netanyahu must commit himself to improving intel and security infrastructure to prevent a future attack. Hamas or some other terror group will get another chance to deal Israel a lethal blow. It doesn’t serve the Israeli government to continue damaging Gaza’s dilapidated civilian infrastructure, already bereft of modern amenities. U.N. officials, while condemning Israel, must look to replace Hamas, recognizing the terror group thinks only of itself not Gaza’s 2.3 million residents. Biden finds himself caught between a rock-and-and-hard-place, protecting Israeli citizens, and, at the same time, preventing another humanitarian disaster in Gaza. After Sept. 11, Bush-43 had to pick his battles wisely. Choosing Iraq in 2003 was a colossal mistake, largely because it didn’t address Islamic extremism causing another Sept. 11.
About the Author
John M. Curtis writes politically neutral commentary analyzing spin in national and global news. He’s editor of OnlineColumnist.com and author of Dodging The Bullet and Operation Charisma.
