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Source: https://www.newsweek.com/how-hamas-can-destroyed-military-force-opinion-2041216
How Hamas Can Be Destroyed with Military Force
(Newsweek) Maj. (ret.) John Spencer - Some argue that Hamas cannot be destroyed through military means. However, dismissing Israel's ability to dismantle Hamas militarily fails to account for the constraints the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) faced in the past 16 months. During the initial phase of the war, the IDF was forced to operate under significant restrictions not placed on militaries throughout history. Arab nations - especially Egypt - pressured Israel to conduct military operations in a manner that left civilian populations in areas within Gaza rather than relocating them to safer zones outside the battlefield. Moreover, the Biden administration and other international actors imposed severe limitations on IDF operations. These included withholding military aid, demands to not conduct operations in key Hamas strongholds like Rafah, unrealistic expectations of zero civilian casualties, and frequent pauses in combat due to humanitarian concerns. The IDF was even compelled to limit the scale of its operations from the beginning of the war, prolonging the conflict and allowing Hamas to regroup. Finally, Israel had to divert substantial military resources to northern Israel to counter Hizbullah's attacks and the persistent threats of a large-scale ground assault. Israel also faced attacks from Iran and the Houthis in Yemen, preventing a fully concentrated effort against Hamas. Should military operations resume, they will unfold under a vastly different set of conditions. In addition, Hamas is no longer the formidable force it was at the onset of the conflict, having been degraded into a guerrilla force with weakened leadership and reduced firepower. The writer is chair of urban warfare studies at the Modern War Institute at West Point.