'Israel' yet to achieve Gaza war objectives, faces next-phase dilemma

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: The Economist
15 Dec 2023 06:24

The Economist says that while the Israeli occupation has no option but to shift to the "low-intensity" phase of the war, it has not yet achieved its declared core war objectives.

Israeli tanks and armored personnel carriers deployed in an unknown location inside Gaza, image released on November 21, 2023 (social media)

The Israeli occupation entity is trying to give its domestic front the impression that Hamas' resistance is "collapsing," however, this is not yet the "image of victory" that Israelis are demanding from their leaders, The Economist said in a report on Thursday.

According to the magazine, the current large-scale attack is the last in the war on the Resistance.

A security official was quoted by the report as saying, "We have been at peak deployment for over two months now," adding that, "the next stage will be a lower-intensity mobile campaign."

Meanwhile, the crucial question for the Israeli military leadership is whether shifting the war to a lower-intensity one will achieve the entity's main goal of "destroying Hamas".

However, the report noted that "Israel" has no option other than scaling back its war, especially since the United States, the entity's main ally and weapons provider, is pushing toward that option.

The continued mobilization of 360,000 reserve soldiers since the beginning of the war has started to strain the Israeli economy.

Despite trying to give its settlers the impression that Hamas' resistance is collapsing and that it now controls large areas in the Gaza Strip as the high-intensity phase of the war reportedly nears its end, Hamas still has thousands of fighters, and they emerge from tunnels to carry out ambushes on Israeli soldiers, the magazine pointed out.

Additionaly, the Resistance still holds over 130 Israelis as captives, who are in constant danger of being killed due to the Israeli bombing.

As for the war development, "Israel" is yet to achieve the declared objectives of killing Hamas' leadership or destroying its infrastructure, despite employing massive firepower and advanced air surveillance capabilities.

Warfare stratey dilemma

Earlier this week, The Wall Street Journal reported that recent Israeli ground losses in Gaza indicate that the military's overarching goal to incapacitate Hamas and its ability to harm Israelis remains out of reach, even in the northern part of the Gaza Strip, which has been the main focus of the army's offensive since the beginning of the war.

According to the Israeli military, since launching the ground war, 115 soldiers and officers have been killed, and approximately 600 have been wounded in Gaza. This is the highest number of casualties the occupation army has ever suffered in previous wars against the Palestinian Resistance in the Strip.

Commenting on the situation on the battlefield, former Israeli intelligence official Shalom Ben Hanan said that carrying out military operations from house to house and “checking things from up close instead of destroying them from far away” comes at a price for Israeli forces.

In military and security internal discussions, some have begun to question this strategy, he noted.

“I’m already hearing criticism that it’s not OK, and we have to fight differently, that we have to fight in a way that is safer for IDF soldiers,” he disclosed, adding that they are asking “if it is essential to battle this way, versus with tanks and planes.”