"Israel" is hellbent on extinguishing Hamas: Palestinian analyst
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In an interview with Al Mayadeen Net, Ali Al-Jarbawi, professor of International Relations at Birzeit University, said the Al-Aqsa Flood will be a watershed event in the history of the Palestinian struggle for liberation.
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Professor of International Relations at Birzeit University, Ali Al-Jarbawi. (Social media)
In an exclusive interview with Al Mayadeen Net, professor of International Relations at Birzeit University, Ali Al-Jarbawi said Operation Al-Aqsa Flood will have groundbreaking effects.
"But we need to wait and see the results of the battle and understand who the shift will be in favor of."
He affirmed that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is forced to carry out a military operation unlike he's ever carried out in the past. Hence, he believes that Netanyahu only has two options.
Either to strike Gaza with painful and retaliatory airstrikes, resulting in a significant number of casualties, and these options end with Egyptian intervention, and again Qatari or Arab and foreign interventions. This scenario has been tried before and has become clear to "Israel" that all previous actions did not deter Hamas. That said, the occupation most definitely culminated in an unprecedented shock last Saturday with Operation Al-Aqsa Flood.
#BREAKING | Fatah movement spokesperson Munther al-Hayek: Netanyahu is ethnically cleansing our people, and we call on our Arab brothers to intervene quickly to prevent the disaster from happening. #Palestine #GazaUnderAttack #OperationAlAqsaFlood pic.twitter.com/iOySnUr24l
— Al Mayadeen English (@MayadeenEnglish) October 11, 2023
Al-Jarbawi explains that "Israel" seems to be heading towards another option, with a complete break from all previous agreements and confronting Hamas with the objective of extinguishing it.
Read more: Israeli media: Netanyahu gov. gambles with lives of Israeli captives
This requires launching an infantry military operation and occupying Gaza. Not only is "Israel" going for revenge, but now "Israel" has the belief it can't coexist with Hamas and that it has become necessary to extinguish it. Therefore, they may enter by land for a comprehensive confrontation despite human and material losses.
Al-Jarbawi believes that "Israel" may have come to the conclusion of "exterminating" Hamas, rather than repeating the previous pattern of battles against Hamas, which would result in a ceasefire. He added that this scenario may lead to opening other fronts against "Israel".
Will Hizbullah intervene? Reports that Egyptian negotiators have informed Israel that Hizbullah will take military action if it invades Gaza are not far-fetched. Several factors will determine whether Hizbullah will launch its long-threatened “unification of arenas” strategy. 1/5
— Amal Saad (@amalsaad_lb) October 7, 2023
Regarding prisoner exchange between Hamas and "Israel", Al-Jarbawi points out that if "Israel" goes with the option of "exterminating" Hamas, it means that it has decided to sacrifice the Israeli captives.
Read more: Resistance missiles from Lebanon target settlements avenging martyrs
However, Al-Jarbawi considers that Hamas's resilience in Gaza, along with its possession of a large number of prisoners, is a treasure that must be preserved. Through persistent resistance and the Israeli captives, significant achievements can be made, with the least being a prisoner exchange deal.
Al-Jarbawi stressed that Operation Al-Aqsa Flood was an unprecedented blow to "Israel," since its foundation in 1948, describing it as the most severe blow it has ever received.
Read more: IOF increases raid intensity on Gaza as number of martyrs reaches 950
Regarding the former US Ambassador to "Israel", Martin Indyk, considering the consequences of the Al-Aqsa Flood as an Israeli 911, Al-Jarbawi said: "For Israel, this operation is considered an earthquake because it had no control within its borders, the resistance took control of settlements, vehicles, prisoners, and killed a large number of soldiers in the IOF."
"Israel was severely damaged because the blow came from a party known to have modest capabilities that cannot be compared to the IOF's capabilities. For that reason, what happened was an earthquake in every sense."
In response to the #Palestinian Resistance's operation in Israeli settlements, "Israel" decided to collectively punish all #Palestinians in #Gaza by blocking their basic needs, such as their water networks and fuel supply.
— Al Mayadeen English (@MayadeenEnglish) October 11, 2023
With hospitals shutting down and no electricity, how… pic.twitter.com/KQeZ1aDYC1
Read more: Around 20 settlements have been completely destroyed
