The campaign in Iran, for all its extraordinary and heroic successes, also highlights our continuing tragic failure in Gaza. Militarily, Operation Rising Lion serves as a remarkable testament to our prowess in what the IDF calls the “war between the wars”: campaigns based on intelligence, air force, and special operations, as outlined in the Winograd Report in the wake of the Second Lebanon War.
This is clearly distinct from all-out war, occupation, and control, and is definitely not a decisive victory, aiming instead for “significant damage,” as defined in the Cabinet’s resolutions regarding the aims of the campaign.
That is why what happened in Iran only serves to further illuminate the shortcomings in Gaza. Since day one, the operational plan in the Gaza Strip was never aimed at military victory, only at stagnation and attrition. I have consistently noted this in sessions of the Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee since the start of Operation Swords of Iron.
To achieve victory in Gaza, we must establish absolute control over the land, the people, and every critical resource.
These are Hamas’s sources of power, over which it has maintained unbridled control throughout the war, enabling it to restore its military capabilities.
It channels massive funds into the Gaza Strip, distributing hundreds of millions of shekels monthly to its fighters, employees, and for its terror-related needs, without hindrance.
Despite the Cabinet’s October 7 directive to dismantle Hamas’s governing capabilities, its regime, made up of 25 local authorities and a web of civil systems functioning like a machine of death, remains fully operational.
Hamas has complete control over the aid coming into Gaza
Hamas exercises unrestricted control over the generous aid that the IDF Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT), abundantly brings in for it: food, water, communications equipment, medical equipment and supplies, and, most critically, millions of liters of fuel that generate electricity and serve its war machine.
This electricity is used to ventilate terror tunnels from which killing operations emerge to kill hundreds of our soldiers, power weapons production, communications and surveillance systems, drill and rebuild undergrown infrastructure, and preserve food in refrigerated warehouses, and much more.
Hamas maintains full control over the population, the media, religious, social, and educational institutions, along with the military training of militants. The population largely cooperates fully, although in some cases coercion is used.
This approach renders victory impossible. Instead, we are depleting ourselves and our soldiers, rather than the enemy. Operation Gideon's Chariots, much like previous rounds of fighting, if unaltered, risks the deaths of hundreds of soldiers and the wounding of thousands, all without achieving the essential objective: decisive military victory.
Let me be clear: this criticism is not directed at the commanders or soldiers on the front line; I hold immense admiration for each one, they fight like lions and are willing to make the ultimate sacrifice. My criticism is aimed at the high command, those who dictate combat doctrine and manage the campaign.
The IDF has, for many years, lost its grasp of the true nature of war, with fundamental concepts eradicated from its military doctrine. As a result, entire divisions are deployed in a bizarre mix of food distribution, pointless house demolitions, and fruitless patrols through alleyways and tunnel shafts where the enemy possesses inherent advantages.
The right way to fight an urban guerrilla enemy is simple enough and was outlined in the “Generals' Plan” eighteen months ago. The required mode of battle is a siege, an efficient siege. What is happening today is the exact opposite of this.
We are strengthening enemy fighters, sending them into battle well-fed and fully capable of inflicting harm on our troops, all because of unfounded legal opinions issued by the Attorney General and the Military Advocate General.
Minister Bezalel Smotrich recently presented these opinions before the Knesset, as they were raised during the most recent Cabinet meetings. The fact that the Chief of Staff, the Minister of Defense, and Cabinet ministers yield to these flawed opinions, which defy international law, constitutes an egregious crime against our soldiers.
What, then, should be done?
The first step is to take full control of the Netzarim Corridor, an essential route that divides the northern and southern Gaza Strip, securing it both above and below ground.
This would take our forces an hour above ground and a week or two, at most, below ground, and do not let anyone convince you otherwise. This would effectively cut off Hamas’s operational link between north and south, allowing us to impose an effective siege over the northern part of the Gaza Strip.
Second, the entire population north of that axis must be relocated to the south, where the aid is being distributed.
Third, we must undertake a thorough destruction of all sources of sustenance in the north: fuel, food, and water. Then, and only then, after the enemy emerges from the tunnels exhausted and subdued, should we proceed with a systematic purge of the remaining terrorists in the area.
This should be done in northern Gaza and concurrently in all the other areas until total control is achieved over the entire territory, its population, and resources.
No involvement of foreign contractors. No local militias. The IDF, only the IDF, must assume full control.
This is the path to a short war and swift resolution, with minimal casualties among our forces. This is the decision the Prime Minister should have made yesterday. This is the only path to victory.
The writer is a member of Knesset for the Likud Party.