Israel Failed Long Before Oct. 7 Amid Years of Ignored Warnings
Translated & summarized from Arutz Sheva by baba
An opinion piece argues that Israel's strategic failure predates the October 7th attacks, stemming from years of ignoring warnings and strengthening Hamas. The author criticizes the current focus on minor details, like a potential visit by Egyptian intelligence, as a political maneuver to avoid accountability for a long-term strategic miscalculation. The article calls for a shift to proactive threat elimination rather than passive containment, warning of future failures if this approach isn't adopted.
The story in 6 lines · by baba
- Israel ignored numerous warning signs and strengthened Hamas for years, leading to strategic failure before October 7th.
- The debate over an Egyptian intelligence chief's visit before October 7th distracts from the larger issue of ignored threats.
- For two decades, Israel pursued a policy of 'containment' and 'arrangement' with Gaza, pouring money into Hamas.
- Political and military figures are accused of using the visit debate to evade responsibility for the strategic failure.
- The article calls for a proactive security doctrine focused on eliminating threats, not managing them.
- The West Bank is cited as an example of ongoing strategic failure due to reliance on foreign actors and Palestinian security.
A debate over whether the head of Egyptian intelligence visited Israel shortly before the October 7th Hamas attacks is missing the larger point, according to an opinion piece. The author argues that for years, Israel ignored numerous warning signs, strengthened Hamas, and believed that peace could be bought with money, a strategy that ultimately failed.
Regardless of the specifics of the Egyptian official's visit, the core issue is Israel's consistent disregard for escalating threats over two decades. The article contends that instead of addressing the growing violence, including attacks and terrorism, Israel poured funds into Gaza, bolstering Hamas under the false belief that it would not pose a threat. This approach, termed "containment," "arrangement," and "conflict management," is criticized for allowing threats to fester.
The author suggests that the focus on the Egyptian intelligence chief's visit is a political tactic by both political and military figures to evade responsibility for the strategic failure. This obsession with minor details, rather than confronting existential threats and dismantling them proactively, is seen as detrimental to national security.
The piece calls for a fundamental shift in security doctrine, moving from passive defense to active elimination of threats before they materialize. It warns that clinging to the illusion of "buying" or "managing" terror organizations will lead to repeated failures, not just in Gaza but also in other arenas like Iran and Lebanon.
Specifically, the article points to the situation in the West Bank (Judea and Samaria) as an example of ongoing strategic failure, where reliance on foreign actors and Palestinian security mechanisms persists. It criticizes the current leadership for not heeding years of warnings from settlers about potential "reversal of roles" scenarios and urges a proactive, offensive approach to dismantle threats there as well, asserting that the responsibility for the land and its citizens lies solely with Israel.
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