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A New Existential War: Israel's Perception of the Enemy's Goals

(Begin-Sadat Center for Strategic Studies-Bar-Ilan University) Maj.-Gen. (res.) Gershon Hacohen - Many believed that in the era of peace with Egypt and Jordan, and with the collapse of Syria's army in the civil war, the era of threats from state armies had ended. Experts explained that while there were remaining threats from terrorist organizations, they did not pose an existential threat to the State of Israel. On Oct. 7, Israel received a painful wake-up call that this was a dangerously wrong assessment. Israel had become accustomed to focusing on the nuclear threat as an existential danger. However, combined with the threat from Hizbullah in the north, Palestinian terrorist organizations now represent an overarching regional threat. For years, it has been argued that economic development and prosperity for the Palestinians are the key to achieving stability and order. But Hamas' leadership has taught us that its conduct is guided not by the Palestinians' economic situation but by a deep religious rationale. Western cultural observers, who for centuries have separated religious motives from the political, diplomatic, and military considerations of state leaders, have no tools with which to understand the leadership of Iran, Hizbullah, and Hamas, which are driven by religious conviction. It is crucial that the Israeli leadership understand the religious logic guiding Israel's enemies. Mohammad Deif, head of Hamas' military wing, named the current war "Al-Aqsa Flood," in the belief that through this battle, a great cosmic salvation would unfold. Israel's victory must be decisive in a way that neutralizes the belief among the leadership of Hamas, Hizbullah, and Iran that the day of Israel's destruction is at hand. The central goal of the war for Israel should be that upon its conclusion, a profound disappointment will be instilled in the Islamic believers who started and sustained it. They must be forced to accept that once again, their time has not come, and the gates of heaven have not opened before them. Victory is not only contingent on the magnitude of the achievement on the battlefield but on the trends in the struggle that develop in the days after the war. The Hamas vision will likely persist - but Israel's ability to force jihadist believers to recognize their weakness increases the chances of a temporary cessation of their struggle. The writer, a senior research fellow at the BESA Center, served in the IDF for 42 years, commanding troops in battles with Egypt and Syria.
2024-01-05 00:00:00
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