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Targeted Killings Will Not Defeat Hamas and Hizbullah, but Will Weaken Them
(Jewish Chronicle-UK) Brig.-Gen. (res.) Yossi Kuperwasser - Eliminating key leaders of terror organizations is a practice often used by states such as the U.S. and Israel in their war against terror. No one expects that killing these figures will - by itself - bring about the defeat of these organizations. Yet those who use this method of fighting terror consider this tool to be quite effective and the terror organizations themselves probably think the same, judging by their efforts to prevent it from happening. It inflicts psychological damage on them and a very painful hit to their morale - and exposes how easily they can be penetrated and how vulnerable they are. It is supposed to sow fear and distrust in their ranks, especially among the remaining leaders. It may degrade the quality of their leadership and weaken their operational competence. True, in some cases the successor may be even more dangerous than the outgoing leader, but in most cases the replacement is less impressive. It is also a way of handing these terrorists the punishment they deserve and preventing them from carrying out more terror operations. If the eliminations repeat themselves within a relatively short period of time, are directed against the entire leadership echelon, and are part of a wider effort to weaken and defeat the terror organization, their impact can be more significant. The writer, Director, National Security and Middle East Affairs at the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs, is former head of the IDF Military Intelligence Research Division.