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Fighting in Gaza Exposes Overlapping Interests of Hamas and Israel
(Israel Hayom) Brig.-Gen. (res.) Udi Dekel - The targeted killing of Palestinian Islamic Jihad commander Baha Abu el-Ata showed that Israel can reach anyone planning terror attacks against it. The decision to focus on PIJ, rather than Hamas, can be viewed as a policy shift by Israel. Hamas and Israel's conduct exposes their overlapping interests, not just in weakening PIJ but also in laying the groundwork for a long-term ceasefire. PIJ realizes it is currently alone and that the longer this fight drags on, the damage it incurs will become more acute. The writer, former head of the IDF Strategic Planning Division, is managing director of the Institute for National Security Studies at Tel Aviv University.