In the fourth round of fighting in 12 years between Israel and Palestinian terrorist organizations in the Gaza Strip, attacks from Gaza once again targeted Israel’s civilian front. The attacks were characterized by extensive use of high-trajectory weapons – some 400 munitions daily – causing casualties and considerable property damage in Israel’s civilian space. Nonetheless, due to the relatively short duration of the fighting and the efficient actions of the relevant systems in Israel, above all the IDF’s air defense system, the...
Along with the heavy rocket barrages launched against Israel during Operation Guardian of the Walls, there were a number of attempts by Hamas to attack Israel with the use of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), mostly loaded with explosives. According to Hamas, their purpose is to attack IDF forces, Israeli towns and villages, and the gas installations at sea. These attempts were foiled by the IDF or suffered technical failures. In addition, Hamas attempted to operate unmanned submarines against marine targets. These efforts were also...
Following Operation Guardian of the Walls, Israel now faces a new legal front and legitimacy campaign. The establishment of a Commission of Inquiry by the UN Human Rights Council in its resolution of May 27 and remarks by the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court that the ICC might investigate potential war crimes committed by the parties in the recent operation are evidence of this additional campaign. Critics have stated that the sheer scope of the destruction of civilian infrastructure in Gaza is proof that Israel has...
Jewish and Arab leaders and public figures at all levels in Israel should now mobilize to assuage feelings of animosity between the two sectors. They must condemn hatred and racism loudly and clearly, and emphasize that this is a vital interest for both Arabs and Jews. Instead of holding a grudge against Arab society following the recent clashes, a government plan for combating violence and crime should be funded and implemented in coordination with the Arab leadership. Multi-year economic and social programs should be launched,...
Hamas’s cognitive achievements in Operation Guardian of the Walls positions the organization where it hoped to be after the Palestinian Authority elections, enjoying much public sympathy and support from groups that are not identified with it. Hamas is seen by many as the organization that changed the equation with Israel and became a more central element that cannot be ignored in the Palestinian arena. The Palestinian arena itself is undergoing a process of change, and Hamas will have greater input in decision making at the national...
President Joe Biden’s friendship with Israel and his administration’s commitment to Israel’s security needs were manifested clearly during Operation Guardian of the Walls. So too was the United States’ central role in managing crises that involve Israel. In contrast, the Congress assumed the role of the “bad cop.” The pressure exerted on the administration to harden its policy toward Israel, mainly (but not only) on the part of the progressive wing within the Democratic Party, was significant. In order to...
Operation Guardian of the Walls was another round in the asymmetric conflict between Israel and Hamas. This asymmetry also applies to the operation’s goals. While Hamas’s objectives were political and cognitive, Israel’s objectives were military. It was proven again that there was no magical solution that would have a lasting, substantive positive impact on the situation in the Gaza Strip. At the same time, the option of an arrangement with Egyptian mediation – a long-term ceasefire and the return of the Israeli...
China identified the crisis between Israel and Hamas in Gaza as a political opportunity to bolster its national interests, particularly in the context of Xinjiang, through vehement opposition to the United States policy towards Muslims. As rotating UN Security Council president in May 2021, China sponsored a statement calling for an immediate halt in the violence against the Palestinian Muslims, while accusing the United States of thwarting a joint declaration through its one-sided support for Israel. At the same time, China claimed...
Operation Guardian of the Walls provided Jerusalem an opportunity to examine Hezbollah’s policy while Israel was engaged in a military confrontation with Hamas. It was also a testing ground for Iran and Hezbollah. During the campaign, Hezbollah refrained from any direct military action against Israel and contented itself with emphasizing its support for Hamas’s struggle for Jerusalem as part of the “axis of resistance.” It encouraged solidarity demonstrations with Palestinians throughout Lebanon and along the...
As in every kinetic military campaign against Hamas and its allies in the Gaza Strip, the cognitive aspect was embedded from the very beginning of Operation Guardian of the Walls, and its importance increased as the campaign progressed. The integration of the cognitive campaign with the kinetic is essential for the realization of military achievements in order to then reap political gains. For Israel, the first cognitive achievement required is a deep engraving in the minds of Hamas commanders and their associates, as well as in the...
Israel hit Hamas hard, but the Israeli public was frustrated by the ongoing rocket fire, the IDF’s inability to prevent it, and the lack of a decisive and unequivocal Israeli victory. This dissonance is the outcome of three surprises experienced by the Israeli public in the course of the campaign: the fact that the political echelon chose (yet again) to deter Hamas and not to vanquish it; the inability of the IDF’s offensive operations to stop the rocket fire; and the military’s difficulty in explaining and demonstrating...
Ten days of fighting in the Gaza Strip have again illustrated the dilemma of when, how, and under what conditions the campaign should be ended. While Hamas achieved the goals that it set for itself at the outset of the campaign – positioning itself as the defender of al-Aqsa and Jerusalem and leading the Palestinians in the struggle against Israel – Israel has not freed itself from the logic that guided its actions in previous rounds of conflict with Hamas, centering on strong deterrence. The strategic objective that the Israeli...
