Israel's Defense Possibilities Following the Hamas Attack

El Mostrador, October 12, 2023

Israel lacks strategic depth; its enemies are close and overwhelming, which does not allow much time for reaction. This proximity is the foundation upon which it organizes its defense strategy, which must be robust in order to deter or act overwhelmingly when necessary.

This column is written on the morning of Wednesday, October 11, 2023. Israel has not yet launched its ground offensive, and it is uncertain whether it will, as this depends on developments elsewhere and the needs that may arise. For now, they have used missiles, rockets, and their air force to eliminate terrorists, their organization, and logistics. The magnitude and characteristics of the Hamas attack are just beginning to be understood, which, in the purest style of ancient barbarians, killed, raped, and violently kidnapped human beings, most of whom were Jewish civilians, including the elderly and children.

Hamas’s real objective is to eliminate the State of Israel and the Jews. Any other claim is false. However, it must also be clearly stated that, while it is true that Hamas members are Palestinians, not all Palestinians support their terrorist activities, and it remains to be seen whether they will continue to be used as human shields against air force attacks.

Israel is located in a complicated neighborhood and, for now, cannot consider any of its borders secure, not even those with Egypt or Jordan, countries that could switch sides in the blink of an eye. We already know where Gaza and the West Bank stand in relation to them, and to the north, it faces Hezbollah in Lebanon and the Syrians in the Golan Heights. Iran is its main opponent, financing and equipping all its rivals.

Israel lacks strategic depth; its enemies are close and overwhelming, which does not allow much time for reaction. This proximity is the foundation upon which it organizes its defense strategy, which must be robust in order to deter or act overwhelmingly when necessary, as is the case now.

Israel’s enemies primarily attack with rockets or missiles and occasionally with incursions like the one last Saturday. In simple terms, Israel would need a protective shield with 100% effectiveness (the current one has 90%), logistics to keep the shield operational (which depends on its relationship with the U.S.), fences or barriers with improved surveillance and alert systems compared to the version that was breached, as well as cutting-edge cybersecurity and intelligence.

It sounds easy, but it is not, whether because things fail or because they are directed by humans, who also make mistakes. That is why, alongside the above, it needs ground, naval, and air forces to reset the conditions whenever necessary. By reset I mean eliminating or neutralizing the bases from which they are attacked, which is what they are currently doing with Hamas in Gaza. The reset is not easy, given that their enemies operate in highly populated urban centers, something they do intentionally to limit Israeli action.

It is said that wars are the continuation of politics by other means, and that is correct. They are decided by the politicians in power if they have legitimacy and popular support, something that Hamas apparently achieved with its barbaric attack, as it managed to unite Israel behind a national unity government to avenge the deaths of its children and elderly, the kidnappings of its people, and the rapes of its women.

The military instrument will execute the government’s orders, which would not exist if not for the people’s demand. The orders will likely be to conduct a complete reset of the entire neighborhood in which they live and eliminate any threat, whether real or potential, as the most recent experience awakened their deepest fears and memories.

Richard Kouyoumdjian
Vice President, AthenaLab

Source: El Mostrador

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The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of AthenaLab.