In an opinion piece, the author argues that Israel must stop letting its enemies set the rules and instead answer every strike on Israel or IDF soldiers with an overwhelming response in Lebanon. He says that if Israel does not define the “rules of the game,” the enemy will do so “in blood, fire and missiles,” and that the current war has shown there is no vacuum in deterrence.
The piece says the response should not be limited to a pinpoint strike on a single commander or building, but should target dozens of structures, headquarters, weapons depots and other vital assets. The author says international calls for “proportionality” are misplaced in this context, because the legal principle concerns harm to uninvolved civilians, not the scale of damage Israel inflicts on the enemy.
He ties the argument to a broader regional picture, saying Iran uses Hezbollah’s attacks on IDF troops and Israeli civilians to pressure the United States through Lebanon, and that American pressure on Israel to hold back in the north is a mistake. According to him, Israeli restraint would push residents of the Galilee and northern communities to flee, while easing pressure on Iran would let it rebuild nuclear capabilities and threaten Israel again with thousands of ballistic missiles.
The author says Israel’s current approach has become too defensive, relying on Iron Dome, walls and “surgical risk management” instead of removing the enemy’s motivation. He identifies Hamas, Hezbollah and Shiite militias as having developed cheap, asymmetric warfare using homemade drones, anti-tank missiles and mortars. He concludes that only broad destruction in Lebanon, without apologies or deference to foreign pressure, will restore deterrence and initiative.
