The unconditional military and diplomatic support of Israel from many Western countries has exacerbated internal divisions in the UN Security Council and seriously affected its ability to act.
Hamas cannot be destroyed
Since October 7, IDF Chief of General Staff Herzi Halevi has spoken of dismantling, rather than eliminating Hamas and this term indirectly recognises that even a protracted war will not be able to destroy the resistance group. In mid-February, Israeli military intelligence assessments showed that even if the regime eliminated the military potential of Hamas, it would still continue to operate in Gaza.
In March, the U.S. intelligence community said in its annual report that Israel was likely to face resistance from Hamas “for years to come”. Many Western officials have also recognised that Israel will not be able to suppress the resistance of the Palestinians, their will to freedom and their desire to create their own State of Palestine. The EU’s foreign policy chief said in February that Israel needed a political, not military, solution to the conflict with the Palestinians. Speaking during a panel discussion on the side-lines of the Munich Security Conference in Germany, Josep Borrel warned that Israel would not be able to defeat Hamas militarily.
Many also note the preposterous failure of the UN. Even Secretary General Antonio Guterres, who was declared persona non grata in Israel, admitted that “we (the UN) have no real power, let’s be honest. The only UN body with some power is the Security Council, but this body is paralysed too”.
A representative of the Israeli armed forces also disputed Netanyahu’s military objective a few months ago. “The idea that Hamas can be destroyed or made to disappear is a spit in the face of the public”, Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari said in an interview with Israeli TV channel 13. He added: “Hamas is an idea deeply rooted in the hearts of Gazans”.
Later, these comments were repeated by Defence Minister Yoav Gallant. Speaking at a closed-door Knesset committee meeting in August, he called Netanyahu’s slogan of complete victory over Hamas “nonsense” and “gibberish”. Gallant also said Netanyahu’s goal of achieving a ‘total victory’ is but empty words.
Israeli society is more widely and actively agreeing with this point of view and, thus, over the past 12 months, protests inside Israel against the regime’s unsuccessful military operation in the Gaza Strip have become commonplace. Protesters have repeatedly called on Netanyahu to conclude a cease-fire agreement with Hamas to secure the release of hostages held in Gaza. Hamas released more than 100 Israeli and foreign prisoners in an exchange with Israel in November. However, many dozens of Israeli hostages died during the carpet bombing by the air force and the responsibility for this rests entirely on Netanyahu and the IDF.
Despite the growing demand within the country to end the conflict, Netanyahu continues to carry out brutal military operations with the tenacity of a maniac, during which many Israeli soldiers and officers also die. According to the Israeli army, 726 soldiers, officers and reservists were killed during the war in Gaza, but these so-called official figures, as is known, must at least be multiplied by two. Bibi is also turning a blind eye to the growing international pressure to end the genocidal war in Gaza, since not only his political career and future trial, but also his very life are at stake.
The Palestinian genocide
The year-long Israeli bloodbath in the Gaza Strip has killed nearly 42,000 Palestinians, including around 17,000 children. According to the Ministry of Health in the Gaza Strip, more than 97,000 people were injured. However, many tens of thousands more remain unaccounted for, with many Palestinians having died under the rubble of destroyed buildings, many are listed as lost. The Israeli army destroyed most of Gaza, attacked hospitals and people who were sheltering there. It not only bombed, but also carpet-bombed medical centres, which, according to international law, should be protected.
The Israeli regime is also accused of starving the Palestinians, largely restricting the import of humanitarian aid into the territory. The UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Food said that such Israeli measures are synonymous with war crimes. “Deliberately depriving people of food is certainly a war crime. Israel has announced its intention to destroy the Palestinian people, in whole or in part, simply for being Palestinian. In my opinion, as a UN human rights expert, there is now a situation of genocide. This means that the state of Israel as a whole is guilty and must be held accountable, not just individuals, be it a government or a person”, Michael Fakhri told the English Guardian newspaper in late February. The Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court also states that the deliberate starvation of civilians by “depriving them of items necessary for their survival, including intentionally obstructing the supply of humanitarian aid” is a war crime.
Western and Arab States have repeatedly criticised Israel’s brutality in Gaza, but they have been unable or unwilling to take any practical measures to stop the genocide there. The continuous and broad support of the U.S. has given Israel the courage to destroy the Palestinians in Gaza. In addition to the $3.8 bn in military aid that Israel receives annually from the United States, the administration of President Joe Biden has provided billions of dollars’ worth of additional weapons to the regime since the start of the war in Gaza and the U.S. president himself has repeatedly said that the United States will defend Israel and their atrocities in any case. So much for the ‘democratic’ US of A in the role of international terrorists!
The Palestinian willpower cannot be broken
On the first anniversary of Operation Al-Aqsa Flood (October 7, 2024), all Palestinian resistance groups in Gaza issued a joint statement promising to continue the fight against the Israeli occupation. The statement highlights the importance of the operation to draw attention to the problem of Palestine and its people, which, according to many experts, has been ignored in world affairs. This is despite decades of Israeli aggression, settlement expansion and violation of international law in the occupied Palestinian territories. Over the past year, this aggression has increased significantly, which the statement of the Palestinian resistance qualifies as a “Nazi-Zionist occupation”.
Victor Mikhin, corresponding member of RANS, exclusively for the online magazine “New Eastern Outlook”
