WASHINGTON -- In December 2008, Israel launched a massive air and ground war in the volatile Gaza Strip, in an attempt to quell a recent spike in rocket fire from Hamas militants in the territory.
That operation, called Cast Lead, was intended to deplete Hamas's store of long-range rockets and reinforce a deterrent effect on terrorist groups in the strip, Israel said. As many of 1,300 Palestinians were killed in the course of the three-week war according to some estimates, and for a time the rocket fire waned significantly.
Four years later, Israel finds itself engaged in virtually a repeat scenario, as airstrikes pound Gaza and tanks stand at the border ready to move in. Hundreds of projectiles had been fired out of Gaza this year by the time Israel launched the new operation last week, and thousands more have flown in both directions since.
Some Israelis like to talk about missions like these as "cutting the grass" -- periodic, large-scale strikes against militants in Gaza that are simply part of a scheme of routine, endless, maintenance.
As Shlomo Brom, a retired Israeli general who is now a senior researcher at the Institute for National Security Studies in Tel Aviv, recently put it in an interview with Foreign Policy magazine, "You need from time to time a Cast Lead Operation."
"I don't think there's anyone who thinks this is the solution to the problem or some sort of major long-term change in the situation," said Charles Freilich, a former Israeli national security adviser and a senior fellow at the Harvard Kennedy School's Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs. "I think, basically, the whole thing is about buying time."
But the pattern also leaves many Israeli experts and former officials dissatisfied, and worried about the apparent lack of any far-reaching game plan for peace.
"What's the long-term Israeli strategy?" said Daniel Levy, the Middle East director for the European Council on Foreign Relations and a former Israeli government official. "Israel has no broader strategy. Instead, there are a bunch of short-term things. Deterrence is one of them. Laying down a marker in the post-Arab Spring environment, that Israel is still strong enough to do what it likes in the neighborhood, is another. And there is also an election side to this."
Shaul Arieli, a retired colonel in the IDF who served as a commander of troops in Gaza and is now a board member of the Tel Aviv-based Council for Peace and Security, says the lack of a broader strategy for the Palestinian situation makes conflicts like the current one essentially unproductive.
"I think this is the wrong move," Arieli told The Huffington Post. "The real question is -- what are we going to do the day after?"
Efraim Halevy, a former head of Israel's intelligence agency Mossad, wrote in an op-ed in the Financial Times on Sunday that without a clear and confined resolution to the conflict in Gaza, "Israel will have to do what no government has done before: determine a comprehensive strategy on the future of Gaza and its 2 million inhabitants."
So far, that comprehensive strategy is lacking, the experts say.
One hope for the conflict might be for Gaza, and Hamas with it, to fall further under the responsibility of Egypt.
"Israel would not be troubled if one of the byproducts of this is that Gaza becomes further pushed into being Egypt's back yard rather than West Bank's back yard," said Levy.
The hope of the current government, Arieli believes, would be to find a way to leave a weakened Hamas isolated in Gaza, where it would harmlessly fester.
"But it's an illusion," Arieli said. "It's not a long-term strategy. It's only a matter of time before Hamas takes over control of the PLO, and comes to be seen as the legal and legitimate representative of the Palestinian people."
Indeed, the recent flurry of diplomatic visitors into Gaza, which have included the foreign minister of Tunisia and the prime minister of Egypt -- as well as an upcoming visit from Ahmet Davutoglu, the popular foreign minister of Turkey, which is a close ally of the United States -- suggests a growing legitimacy for Hamas in Palestine as the conflict drags on.
And as many analysts have pointed out, there seems to be little appetite in the current Israeli government for the far more arduous, and less politically satisfying, work of negotiating peace.
As recently as early November, Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ignored an apparent overture from the Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas when Abbas suggested he was prepared to give up the right of return in a peace settlement.
At the same time, Netanyahu's government approved the construction of 1,200 new settlement homes in the Palestinian West Bank.
As for Gaza, many people who spoke to The Huffington Post in recent days pointed to the moment that opened the current conflict, the targeted assassination of Ahmed Jabari, Hamas' military chief, as an additional sign of the shortsightedness that has characterized the situation.
Jabari was a powerful, disciplined figure with a reputation for ordering and carrying out fierce attacks on Israel over the years, including the mission that led to the capture of Gilad Shalit, an Israeli soldier who was held in Gaza for five years. Some in Israel have taken to referring to him as Israel's Osama bin Laden.
But he was also known as a pragmatist, someone Israeli officials could count on to maintain order in the Strip, and rein in the more reckless Palestinian factions that even Israeli officials recognize are most often responsible for the truce-breaking rocket fire from Gaza.
"He was a very strong person, he had the power to control all the other organizations in the Gaza Strip, especially Islamic Jihad," said Arieli. "It's easier to control the truce and the military power if you have a strong man like Jabari that has the power to enforce his decisions."
"Israel lost a guy we can talk to," added Gershon Baskin, a Jerusalem-based peace activist who played an instrumental role in helping negotiate the release of Shalit last year, which involved back-door discussions with Jabari. "People forget that Jabari was responsible for keeping Shalit alive, instructing captors to treat him with dignity, and make sure he always had food."
Without him, Baskin said, it's hard to imagine Hamas becoming anything but more extreme. "There are contests within Hamas of who is more powerful, and while there is a strong element of extreme people, there is also a very clear element of more pragmatic people, and Jabari was one of them. I would imagine they are going to fall aside now."
From Haaretz:
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton warned Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during her talks in Israel this week not to take any extreme actions in response to the Palestinian move in the United Nations for recognition as a non-member state. Clinton said such steps against the Palestinian Authority could bring about its collapse. The Palestinians are planning to ask the United Nations General Assembly to vote on upgrading its status from non-member entity on the symbolic date of November 29.The day after the cease-fire with Hamas took effect, Israel is preparing for the next crisis with the Palestinians, which is scheduled for six days from now. November 29th is the anniversary of the United Nations vote on accepting the Partition Plan in 1947, which led to the founding of the Jewish Sate. It is also the United Nations' International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People.
Read more here.
From the Jerusalem Post:
Washington is urging Israel not to allow construction in the area known as E-1 between Jerusalem and Ma’aleh Adumim as a possible response to the Palestinian bid for statehood recognition next week at the UN, The Jerusalem Post has learned.Building in E-1, which would create contiguity between Jerusalem and Ma’aleh Adumim to the northeast beyond the Green Line, is something various Israeli governments have long wanted to do, but which US opposition has prevented.
Read more here.
The New York Times' Jodi Rudoren chronicles displays of pride and sacrifice:
Inside a courtyard, there are faded remnants of “Congratulations from the uncles,” from the April wedding of a son of Ahmed al-Jabari, the commander of the Qassam Brigades, the military wing of Hamas, whose assassination last week was the beginning of the latest round of intense battle between Israel and the Gaza Strip.On the wall outside, the colorful Arabic script reads “Welcome hajji, Abu Muhammad,” a reference to Mr. Jabari’s return from a pilgrimage to Mecca last month. Nearby, the freshest paint pronounces a message from the troops: “Rest in peace. The mission has been accomplished.”
Read the full story at the New York Times.
An underground tunnel connecting through which I got into Gaza from Egypt. Israel has repeatedly targeted the tunnel network, trying to hinder flow of goods and weapons into the strip. (Photo by Mosa'ab Elshamy via Flickr)
16 soldiers spelled out 'loser' with their bodies to critique Netanyahu and show frustration at not going into battle.
The Economist discusses how the ceasefire was achieved and whether it could lead to lasting peace in the region.
Among others coming and going were the UN secretary-general, the American secretary of state and the foreign ministers of Turkey and Germany. But the real bargaining took place behind closed doors at the headquarters of General Muhammad Shehata, Egypt’s intelligence chief. There, in separate rooms, the Egyptians haggled with a legal adviser to the Israeli prime minister, and with representatives from Hamas, the Palestinian Islamist group that runs Gaza, and a smaller, more radical Palestinian faction, Islamic Jihad.
From the Associated Press:
JERUSALEM (AP) — Israel's army spokeswoman says an Israeli Arab who is a member of Hamas has been arrested for Wednesday's bus bombing in Tel Aviv.The bombing injured 27 people near Israel's military headquarters and threatened to scuttle efforts to broker a cease-fire to end fighting between Israel and Gaza.
Israeli military spokeswoman Lt. Col. Avital Leibovich reported Thursday on Twitter that authorities had arrested the man who planted the bomb on the bus and identified him as an Arab Israeli from the village of Taybeh. She said he was a member of Hamas.
| @ haaretzcom : BREAKING: #Israel security forces arrest suspects in #TelAviv bus blast http://t.co/91fS0v48 |
A Palestinian boy and militants of the Izzedine Al-Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of Hamas, attend funerals of five Hamas militants in Mugharka village, central Gaza Strip, Thursday, Nov. 22, 2012. Five Hamas militants were killed in an Israeli air strike yesterday, Palestinian health officials said. (AP Photo/Adel Hana)
While the cease-fire agreement between Israel and Gaza on Wednesday brought an end to the rockets and airstrikes, the political fallout is just beginning. The Associated Press offers a breakdown of who won and who lost as a result of the truce agreement:
Read the full story on HuffPost World.
HuffPost Live's Ahmed Shihab-Eldin moderates a panel of bloggers and journalists and looks at whether members of the media have been targeted during the recent Israeli attacks on Gaza.
Statement From the U.S. State Department:
Question: Have the United States and Israel spoken specifically about the importance of safety for journalists covering the ongoing conflict in Gaza?Answer: U.S. officials discussed a range of issues with their Israeli counterparts with respect to the conflict in Gaza, including our concerns for the safety and security of civilians in both Israel and Gaza, which includes journalists in Gaza. In any armed conflict, journalists must be respected and protected from any form of intentional attack. Appropriate measures should be taken to ensure the safety and security of journalists as much as possible.
— Joshua Hersh
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| @ haaretzcom : Israel's FM Avigdor Lieberman: We didn’t negotiate cease-fire with #Hamas, we negotiated with #Egypt http://t.co/91fS0v48 #Gaza |
A Gaza man hugs a Palestinian Islamic Jihad militant after a press conference in Gaza City, Thursday, Nov. 22, 2012. Gazans are celebrating a cease-fire agreement reached with Israel to end eight days of the fiercest fighting in nearly four years constricting the Gaza Strip. (AP Photo/Hatem Moussa)
| @ alextomo : #c4news #gaza Nature does it better: flashes of white light and rolling thunder as a storm piles in over Gaza AND Israel |
| @ NadimJBaba : #Gaza City's got a thunderstorm, windows at Jazeera office still to be replaced after blast damage. Many families in same boat tonight |
| @ AymanM : Pouring down rain in #gaza, eating dinner, loud thunder heard, everyone starts clapping & laughing thinking it was an airstrike #onlyingaza |
| @ sarahussein : My @AFP story on life returning to normal in #Gaza http://t.co/pRiAPilH |
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| @ haaretzcom : Do you think the recently achieved #Gaza cease-fire could lead to a broader agreement with the #Palestinians? http://t.co/Krn55GvI |
Citing a human rights group, the Maan News Agency reports that Israel has transferred to administrative detention approximately 30 Palestinians from the West Bank who were involved in solidarity events for Gaza.
Under the policy of administrative detention, Israel can hold prisoners for renewable terms of six months without pressing charges.
Among the prisoners were leaders from Hamas and Islamic Jihad, as well as university students.
--Eamon Murphy
| @ blakehounshell : RT @BarakRavid: Behind the scenes of Israel's decision to accept Gaza truce - new post on Diplomania - http://t.co/QC2afTKL |
Ultra-Orthodox Jews of the Bratslav Hasidic sect, that gathered to show support for the forces, dance as they celebrate atop of a tank in southern Israel, close to the Israel Gaza Strip Border, Thursday, Nov. 22, 2012. (AP Photo/Tsafrir Abayov)
On the heels of his crucial role in peace negotiations between Israel and Hamas, Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi has consolidated power through a series of constitutional amendments and decrees, the Associated Press reports.
Morsi's amendments also call for the re-trial of members of Hosni Mubarak's regime for the killing of protesters during the Arab Spring.
Read the full story on HuffPost World.
A flak jacket hangs on the cannon of a tank as another is guided to a new position at a staging area near the Israel Gaza Strip Border, southern Israel, Thursday, Nov. 22, 2012. (AP Photo/Lefteris Pitarakis)
Mohammed Badei, leader of the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt, has come out against Wednesday's peace accord between Israel and Hamas.
"The enemy knows nothing but the language of force," said Mohammed Badei. "Be aware of the game of grand deception with which they depict peace accords."
Badei's comments come in sharp contrast to the peace negotiations by Egypt's President, Mohammed Morsi, who is also a member of the Muslim Brotherhood. Badei also went on to say that "jihad is obligatory" and called on Muslims to "back your brothers in Palestine."
Read the whole story on HuffPost World.
Paul Danahar, a BBC reporter in Gaza, has been following on Twitter the saga of a doctor at a hospital in the Strip who found himself suddenly treating his own six-year-old child, who later died from injuries sustained during the shelling. There are few details so far, but on Thursday Danahar added one more sorrowful note: the doctor, according to the UN, had been working so hard helping patients from the bombing that he hadn't seen his own family for three days, until suddenly the patient dying on the table before him was his boy.
--Joshua Hersh
According to Al Akhbar, a photo uploaded on September 29 to the Facebook profile of the head of the IDF's social media unit shows the lieutenant posing with brown mud on his face under the caption: "Obama style."
Sacha Dratwa, a 26-year old "immigrant from Belgium" as he was described in Tablet magazine, is in charge of the IDF's Facebook, Twitter and very controversial Instagram account.
-- Ahmed Shihab-Eldin
In the midst of the fighting between Israel and Hamas militants in Gaza, a Palestinian Authority ambassador vented his anger and frustration about the Hamas leadership in a phone conversation with an Israeli diplomat, Haaretz has reported.
The exchange, which was reported by the Israeli diplomat in a cable that was later leaked to Haaretz's Barak Ravid, captures the irritation and, ultimately, the impotence of the Fatah leadership in the West Bank, which found itself sidelined from the diplomatic conversation over a cease-fire in Gaza, despite technically being the appointed representatives of the Palestinian people around the world.
"The Hamas offices that were destroyed are not important," the unnamed ambassador apparently reported, expressing his sense of Hamas's indifference to what happens to their people. "The real offices are the mosques, which are connected to a widespread network of tunnels. Everything happens underground. Hamas has no regrets over the destruction in Gaza. On the contrary. Hamas gets a great deal of economic and political benefit from the terrible destruction because of the large donations that will come from the world and the political image of the organization that stands on the front line against Israel.”
The Israeli diplomat also reported the PA official as decrying his boss, PA president Mahmoud Abbas (informally known as Abu Mazen) for his failure to bring the people of Gaza under his wing:
"Abu Mazen never troubled to bring the residents of Gaza close to him," he reportedly said. He does not like Gaza, and if he could get rid of it, he would be happy to do so.... One way or another, Abu Mazen’s time is more or less up. The problem is who will replace him.
Reading over the exchange, Jeffrey Goldberg, a close Israel watcher, noted, "The difference between Israel and Fatah is that Fatah dislikes Hamas more."
Read the whole report here.
| @ BBCBreaking : Israeli soldier injured by mortar fire on Wednesday dies of wounds - sixth Israeli to die in recent conflict - reports http://t.co/6aUYSUvw |
| @ RichardEngel : #Israeli troops begin leaving border sites with #gaza |
This New York Times graphic not only charts the attacks in Israel and Gaza, but also identifies the different rockets used by Hamas and the neighborhoods affected by Israeli fire.
More important for many, though, is the context for how big Gaza is in comparison to New York City.
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Posted: 11/18/2012 6:12 pm EST Updated: 11/18/2012 10:56 pm EST