As if anyone really had any doubt, the security cabinet formally declared on Sunday that Israel was at war and pre-dated the war to Saturday at 6 a.m.
The country enters this war with some highly significant assets in its pocket.
First, nearly all those called up for reserve duty and who were in the country at the time showed up for service. Considering the divisions of the last 10 months and the threats made not to answer call-up notices, that is not insignificant.
Secondly is the sense that this war is justified, that it is a war cruelly and brutally thrust upon the country, which now has absolutely no choice but to act to defend itself and protect its citizens. The importance of going to war, knowing that the nation believes in the justification of the war – a war that will undoubtedly cause even more casualties and pain – cannot be overstated.
And thirdly, Israel enters this war with the full, unequivocal backing of the United States.
President Joe Biden, who for the first nine months of this year tried to keep Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his hard-Right government at arm’s length, put to rest any residual sense anyone may have had that his differences with Netanyahu will impinge upon his support for Israel by issuing a powerful statement in his own voice and in front of the camera in support of Israel on Saturday night.
“In this moment of tragedy, I want to say to them and to the world and to terrorists everywhere that the United States stands with Israel. We will not ever fail to have their back,” he said. “We’ll make sure they have the help their citizens need and they can continue to defend themselves.
“Israel has the right to defend itself and its people. Full stop,” Biden added. “There is never justification for terrorist acts. And my administration’s support for Israel’s security is rock solid and unwavering. Let me say this as clearly as I can: This is not a moment for any party hostile to Israel to exploit these attacks to seek advantage. The world is watching.”
This was as strong a statement in defense of Israel’s right to defend itself in the face of terrorist attacks made by any president in recent memory. There was no equivocating here. There were no ifs and buts. “Israel has the right to defend itself and its people. Full stop.”
At least for now.
Under no illusions
No one in Jerusalem is under any illusions that this is a blank check forever. No one is under any illusions that once Israel finishes cleaning out the terrorists from its own territory in the South and begins to take the battle to the enemy in Gaza and the casualties there begin to mount, that pressure on Israel won’t mount as well. It will.
In May 2021, when Israel launched Operation Guardian of the Walls following Hamas rockets on Jerusalem, Biden also stood firmly behind Israel.
That operation lasted for 13 days before he made clear to Netanyahu that he expected Israel to begin de-escalating on the way to a ceasefire.
That nearly two-week period for Israel to take what steps it felt were needed came after a rocket barrage on Israel, including its capital. Saturday’s attack killed upward of 700 people – a staggering, mind-numbing number.
Certainly, the rope the president will give Israel now to do what it feels it must to eradicate Hamas in Gaza will be longer than in 2021 when his support came after Hamas launched a barrage of rockets at Israeli civilians. On Saturday, Hamas not only launched a barrage of rockets but also killed more than 700 people and took dozens more hostage.
Still, when this war’s focus moves abroad from Israeli pain and agony to Palestinian casualties, Biden will come under pressure from within his own party to rein Israel in.
So what may appear like a blank check now, really is not so.
An indication of this came already on Saturday when the US Office of Palestinian Affairs, a part of the US embassy in Jerusalem, tweeted a message condemning the Hamas attacks but urging “all sides to refrain from violence and retaliatory attacks.”
That tweet was subsequently deleted, and the State Department said it was not approved. But that it was initially sent shows that even despite the horrendous nature of Saturday’s attack, there are those inside the State Department who still think in terms of proportionality.
Biden’s words, however, did not hint at proportionality or a call for Israeli restraint, and his unequivocal backing was significant for several reasons.
First, it sent a strong message to those who may have interpreted the cold shoulder the White House gave to Netanyahu, from January until the two met last month at the UN, as a weakening of America’s full support for Israel and that the US would not back a Netanyahu government to the hilt as it would a government headed by a different coalition. This, Biden made clear, is simply not the case.
Secondly, he notified Israel’s enemies that it would be ill-advised to join in the war at this time. When Biden said that this is not the moment for hostile actors to exploit the situation because the world is watching, he meant that the US is watching. That’s a signal to – among others – the Palestinian Authority, as well as to Lebanon, to rein in Hezbollah.
And finally, Biden said he will ensure that Israel has what it needs in the intelligence, diplomatic, and military spheres.
That is an important commitment, as Israel will seek to replenish Iron Dome interceptors depleted following Hamas’ firing of thousands of rockets. Though getting Congress to approve funding for this will be more difficult without a functioning Congress as a result of last week’s ouster of Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy, Biden’s commitment to giving Israel what it needs ensures that he will do what he can to get this done in a timely fashion.