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Laying Siege to Israel's Enemy Isn't a War Crime
(Ha'aretz) Maj.-Gen. (res.) Giora Eiland - 18 years ago Gaza became de facto an independent state. It had clear borders, a stable central regime, an independent foreign policy and its own army. On Oct. 7, 2023, the state of Gaza launched a murderous war against the state of Israel. Militarily, the IDF achieved an impressive victory in Gaza. From the civilian aspect, however, Hamas is winning. It is maintaining its political control because it is still distributing the supplies in Gaza. As a result, Hamas is seen as a government that takes care of the citizens. It gets rich from the supplies, which it receives for nothing but sells for an exorbitant price. With the considerable funds it accumulated, it pays the people loyal to it and recruits more combatants to replace those who were killed. We must now think of another strategy that can create real pressure on the other side. The only solution which can achieve that lies in taking territory. Honor and land are seen as the sole values that guide Arab leaders. That's why I proposed occupying northern Gaza. The argument that occupying territory in war is a forbidden move, and is even a war crime, is totally groundless. The most common and legitimate act in war is occupying territory. In Israel's campaign in Rafah, the IDF moved the maximum number of civilians to another area and the number of civilian casualties was small. We should carry out the exact same campaign in the north of Gaza. First, the civilians must be evacuated, and then we must act against the terrorists who remain there. The most effective and economic way (in terms of casualties) to operate is by laying a siege, not by assault. Siege is an acceptable, approved military tactic by international law. There is no component in this proposal that is in violation of humanitarian international law. The writer is a former head of Israel's National Security Council.