An article in Haaretz newspaper called on Israelis to be aware of the danger of the “crazy war” that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has been waging on the Gaza Strip since October 2023.

In his article, journalist Uri Misgav called on Israeli officials to stop playing with the minds of their citizens. He wondered, "If Rafah is truly the key to our survival, why did we not attack it before now?"

Misgav continued, "If we (the Israelis) were unable to guarantee the security of the Western Negev without controlling the Rafah crossing, then why did the army wait until this week to seize it?"

He said that if it was clear to the Netanyahu government from the beginning that the residents of the Gaza border area could not return to their homes without destroying the four Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) brigades in Rafah, then why did it not attack this city before now?

We are not stupid

However, he says, adding that the Israeli government and those he describes as frequenters of television newsrooms, including media professionals, broadcasters and analysts, believe that all Israelis are stupid when they talk about the danger of the army entering the city of Rafah in the far south of the Gaza Strip, and about the requirements of Israeli national security and the red lines. “Which is unthinkable, even from the point of view of moderate ministers, to give up.”

Misgav described the war raging in the Gaza Strip as “horrific and criminal,” adding that Chief of Staff Herzl Halevy is no less involved than Netanyahu in insisting on its continuation, stressing that his duty toward the soldiers and citizens of Israel is not limited to implementing orders, but rather to tell the leadership Political "Enough!".

The simple truth - in the opinion of the author of the article - is that entering Rafah did not become an urgent matter until after an agreement with Hamas regarding the exchange of prisoners was close.

Misgav says that Netanyahu's goal is to thwart any deal that would entail a ceasefire, and perhaps an end to the war, stressing that everyone sees and understands this, but the prime minister continues to "chatter."

"Crazy Netanyahu"

He also believes that "crazy Netanyahu" turned Israel's concept of security upside down, noting that the first Prime Minister of Israel, David Ben-Gurion, and his successors in the position set simple principles based on fighting the war on enemy territory, winning it quickly, and taking advantage of military achievements to achieve political goals. .

The author of the article believes that Israel cannot bear the burden of a long-term war on its economy and its internal front, or ignore foreign powers, but must use them to end the fighting in a way that guarantees its security and interests.

According to him, the war on the Gaza Strip has so far continued for 7 months, that is, longer than the Battle of Stalingrad, one of the most important major and decisive battles witnessed in World War II, and its theater was the Russian city of Stalingrad (currently Volgograd).

Misgav adds that achieving “complete victory” is not a goal, and that putting an end to Hamas’ rule over the Gaza Strip is “impossible” without a plan to replace it with regional and international assistance.

Source: Haaretz