In an analysis of the attack launched by the Palestinian armed resistance on Saturday against Israel, Haaretz newspaper said that there are 4 options facing Israel in the Gaza Strip: They are all bad.

Aside from the shock caused by the “Al-Aqsa Deluge” and the failures that accompanied military intelligence and the army, Israel finds itself facing a difficult problem that is difficult to address, as Israeli journalist Amos Harel says in his analytical article in the newspaper published in Tel Aviv.

He adds that the attack requires a "ferocious" military response, while Israel still hopes - one way or another - to do so without getting involved in a multi-front war, in which Lebanese Hezbollah is also participating.

The writer confirms that this is the first time that Israel has dealt with a situation in which its enemy is holding dozens of military and civilian hostages, as well as the bodies of many soldiers and civilians. He continued to say, "We have never seen such scenes in our lives, and it is natural for them to arouse tremendous anger and extreme frustration."

In his article, Harel identified 4 options that he believes Israeli leaders should consider.

These options are summed up in urgent negotiations on a prisoner exchange agreement, with Hamas demanding an “astronomical” price: the release of Palestinians convicted of killing Israelis from Israeli prisons, thus achieving another huge morale boost.

Or launching a “crushing” air campaign against Hamas targets in the Gaza Strip, in which thousands of Palestinian civilians will be killed or wounded, or tightening the siege on the Gaza Strip and destroying its infrastructure, which could cause a humanitarian and international catastrophe.

While the fourth scenario is a large-scale ground operation that would inflict multiple losses on both sides and “may ultimately fail.”

However, the author of the article goes back and adds that none of these options seem good, “but this is the nature of difficult dilemmas,” and yet he believes that this is the way in which true leadership is scrutinized.

Leadership test

He said that those who are subject to this test or scrutiny are: Netanyahu, “who led us into this trap in the first place,” in addition to the directors of the security services, “who do not trust the prime minister, and members of the government,” most of whom lack political experience and a minimum sense of responsibility, and lack Sufficient military experience.

He claimed that betrayal may have occurred and caused everything that happened last Saturday, without revealing names. However, he soon removed suspicion from the military establishment.

He said in this regard, “The military establishment cannot have failed to identify and contain the attack (as it actually happened, and its consequences were dire), as there must have been betrayal from within.”

He accused "someone, perhaps an officer from the progressive left," of opening the doors to Hamas fighters. "Otherwise, how can the disaster be explained?"

Emergency government

On the other hand, the seriousness of the crisis in its background seemed to lead to the formation of an emergency government, according to the article, whose author believes that the need for more skilled and steadfast hands at the wheel has never been clearer than it is today.

Looking back, it is clear that what happened was a huge mistake; The shortage of defenders of the Be'eri settlement - one of the population centers that suffered the worst cases of the incursion - is what enabled Hamas to advance and inflict heavy losses on Israel, according to the Haaretz article.

Harel attributes this to the government's continued neglect of the region's security needs and the army's tense relationship with local community security coordinators and emergency teams.

He believes that after the war ends, an investigation committee must be formed to look into what happened in depth, and perhaps even provide personal advice.

Source: Haaretz