Maariv: The Israeli Army Is Terrified

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On Friday, the Israeli newspaper Maariv published an article by Kalman Libeskind, in which he depicts the Israeli "army" as afraid, hesitant, and confused. All it wants is to end the day and return home in peace.

IOF looks frightened and does not want to escalate

The author starts his article by announcing that the price will be very high "if we don't wake up". He describes the image of the IOF as hesitant, reluctant, and unwilling to act. After mentioning a few examples, from the lack of deterrence after the recent aggression on Gaza and the absence of solid police response to the solidarity movements by Palestinians in their territories occupied in 1948, he concludes that the IOF is terrified and unwilling to escalate.

"We are weak," Israeli journalist Kalman Libeskind says.

Libeskind then talks about Palestinian prisoners' movements criticizing what he called powers that the prisoners enjoy inside their cells. The author wonders how they are allowed "to establish specific regulated cells for organizations behind bars," where prisoners from the same political orientations can negotiate with the prison's administration. He says that the IOF is afraid of prisoners "who act as if they are sitting in the offices of their organization in Jenin, and not in the prison of the 'State of Israel'."

The one who fears this situation is "Israel"

Regarding the hunger strikes, the article represents the IOF as submissive to the demands of the prisoners out of fear that "the earth will burn" in case any of them dies. He argues that their jailers should instead set the plate for them and tell them that "whoever does not come to eat will bear the consequences." Normally speaking, the Palestinians should be afraid of a situation that involves an escalation, however, the one who is in great fear of this situation is 'Israel', despite the claims that it has one of the strongest armies in the world, the author concludes.

The author proceeds to say that the IOF "is doing everything in its power not to hit anything." He proclaims that all the stories of the Israeli spokesperson about qualitative strikes on training facilities, military sites, and arms cache will not succeed in hiding the fact that we are afraid." 

"(We) do not have the courage to kill the enemy," Libeskind says.

Rosenfeldt: In the culture of the people around us, stones are thrown at dogs

Concerning the death of IOF soldier Barel Shmueli, he attributed the cause of his death to "Israel" playing "with the enemy by its rules." Libeskind continues to say that Chief of Staff Kokhafi's is "missing the (main) event." According to him, the IOF is only allowed to carry the simplest tools and equipment to disperse demonstrations, such as tear gas. To this end, the author relates a story narrated by a retired Israeli officer Lt. Col. Gore Rosenfeldt on his facebook page about his soldier daughter who was hit on the face by a stone. He says, speaking about the incident, "The truth is that this did not surprise us. The last time she was at home, she said that they stand helpless in the face of riots and stone-throwing."

The retired IOF officer continues to say, "In the culture of the peoples around us, stones are thrown at dogs," Thus, he criticizes the "army" that responds to these stones with teargas Lt. Col. Gore Rosenfeldt. Libeskind then proceeds to say, "when the 'IDF' spokesperson reports that Molotov cocktails and bombs are thrown at our forces and describes them as riots, something is wrong here. When the enemy throws a Molotov cocktail at 'IDF' soldiers, he must receive a bullet in the head."

Libeskind: This is not the sight of an army after victory

Libeskind announces that the IOF is not concerned with preserving the life of its men and is not doing enough to deter "Palestinians in Gaza", demanding a violent response to actions such as burning fields, referring here to the use of incendiary balloons by the Gazans to pressure the occupation into lifting the siege on Gaza.

"An army that wants to win does not look like this. This is how a fleeing army looks, frightened, hesitant, and confused, with the sole focus on ending the day in peace," the Israeli journalist says commenting on the morale of the IOF.

"Israel", after 73 years, is taking a nap

Ultimately, the article concludes with a pessimistic prediction of the future of "Israel" that is suffering from an immigration crisis, but is, at the same time, allowing non-Jews to immigrate in larger numbers to what should be exclusively a Jewish "state". "Israel, after 73 years, is taking a nap," he says, and it lacks the will to fight against what he called determined enemies that are desperate to win." He stresses that the Israelis should "shake" themselves off or a huge price will have to be paid.