Since October 7, 2023, Israel has wreaked havoc in the Middle East. Israel’s persistent bombing is destabilizing the whole region for decades to come.
Two Years of Devastation in Gaza and the Regional Fallout
Washington’s Policy Dilemma and the Legacy of Post-9/11 Interventions
After the October 7 attack on Tel Aviv, the then US President Joe Biden warned the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu against making the same mistake that Washington made following the 9/11 attacks. Although President Biden never explained what he meant by this statement, it appears that he sought to advise the Netanyahu administration to exercise restraint rather than overreaching or overreacting. President Biden’s advice was based on the US’s inglorious experience in Afghanistan, which resulted in significant loss of budget, lives, and US prestige. The then US President G.W. Bush invaded Afghanistan and Iraq and proposed a new US policy for the Middle East. He sought to install democracy, ignoring the ground realities, in the region to transform the Middle East. This idealistic approach not only emboldened Iran but also triggered the creation of numerous terrorist groups, including ISIS and Al-Qaeda.*
If this was what President Biden meant, then it was the soundest suggestion that he had to offer the Zionist regime during his tenure. Nonetheless, instead of enforcing this idea on the Zionist government, the Biden administration assisted the Netanyahu administration in creating the worst nightmare for mankind. It provided arms and weapons worth tens of billions of dollars to the IDF and defended its genocidal operations and war crimes at the United Nations. In addition, the Biden administration also threatened sanctions on the International Criminal Court jurists, who were investigating Israel’s war crimes in Gaza. All that the then-US government did was to urge the Israeli government to think about the outcome of its indiscriminate bombing in Gaza. It also offered some ceasefire proposals. However, the Israeli government never accepted these proposals and clearly demonstrated its plan of perpetual occupation of Gaza and the West Bank, which the US never refuted or criticized.
Escalation, Regional Spillover, and Shifting Global Sentiment
The Netanyahu government’s war crimes in Gaza were driven by its fantasy of Greater Israel that would lead to the occupation of the entire Palestinian territory and parts of Jordan, Syria, and Lebanon. In pursuit of this ambition, the Netanyahu government has expanded this conflict into a wider regional war. This led to attacks on Israel by different regional pro-Palestine resistance groups, including Lebanon’s Hezbollah and Yemen’s Houthis. The Israeli government targeted Hezbollah hideouts in Lebanon through airstrikes and a ground invasion. It also conducted airstrikes in Yemen, targeting the Houthi government. The Netanyahu government also invaded the Syrian territory during this period to materialize its Greater Israel ambition. The Israeli government also attacked the Iranian consulate in Damascus. In July 2023, it assassinated the Chairperson of Hamas’ political bureau in a covert operation in Tehran.
However, the sides demonstrated significant restraint over these Israeli strikes and attacks. This emboldened Israel to attack Iran, an attempt to further expand the war and weaken all regional resistance groups. The Netanyahu government also urged the United States to join its war on Iran. After initial hesitation, US President Donald Trump launched airstrikes on Iran’s nuclear facilities. President Trump also followed his predecessor’s playbook by providing political and diplomatic backing to Israel and providing it a free hand. He also proposed a 20-point peace plan for the Gaza Strip. However, it was only approved after the Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu was given the opportunity to amend it in Israel’s interests.
The moment Arab and Muslim leaders gathered in Sharm el-Sheik to sign this peace plan, the Israeli government started violating the ceasefire. From October 10 to November 10, Israel has violated the ceasefire at least 282 times, killing more than 240 Palestinians. These Israeli violations are pushing the whole Middle Eastern region into perpetual chaos and violence. Israel is deliberately violating the ceasefire to expand the war into the whole region to achieve its Greater Israel ambition. Since October 7, anti-Zionist sentiment has increased throughout the globe, including Western nations. Israel’s war in the Middle East is costing the US a huge loss of economy and tarnishing its international image. Currently, many US lawmakers are supporting the Zionist agenda. However, changing global circumstances and surging domestic pressure in the US show that the days of pro-Zionist lawmakers in the US are numbered.
*- Terrorist organization banned in Russia
Taut Bataut is a researcher and writer that publishes on South Asian geopolitics
Follow new articles on our Telegram channel
