Did the Gaza Operation Achieve Its Political Goal?

Dr. Hanan Shai
May 24, 2021
Paper No. 2046

Operation Guardian of the Walls was supposed to achieve the political goal of “restoring quiet and security to Israel.” Despite the IDF’s spectacular exploits and extensive destruction of targets, it appears that control over the length of the quiet and the quality of Israel’s security will remain in Hamas’s hands, just as it was before the operation.

The Gaza Rocket Attack on Israel: The Neighbors Smell Weakness

In the last decade and a half, Israel has enjoyed unprecedented security stability that has, in turn, enabled economic and technological prosperity that made it a world-class power. There are increasing signs of a change to this reality, and the recent rocket attack from the Gaza Strip is one of them.

After Political Partition Between the PA and Hamas’s Gaza, Now Economic Boycott

Israel has been increasingly successful at confronting its foes one on one. The Palestinians have not operated against Israel as a united force since 2007, and the threat of a Hamas boycott of PA goods might be deepening the divide between the two even further.

Hamas Fails to Curb Palestinian Islamic Jihad

Following recent rocket fire, Israel cannot tolerate “the rules of the game” that Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) is trying to impose on it, and the objective of reaching a long-term “understanding” with the main terrorist group, Hamas, is looking increasingly distant.

How Hamas Spends Qatari Money

Hamas is probably getting the lion’s share of the 268 million shekels provided by Qatar to Gaza, according to a senior Hamas official. Israel allows the transfer of this “protection” money—but instead of giving Israel “protection”, the devastating trickle of missiles from the pre-2014 period is back augmented by daily batches of incendiary balloons. Only another massive round of fighting will bring quiet to Israel’s southern front.

Is Hamas Being Tamed?

The wedge between Hamas and Islamic Jihad in the recent Gaza conflagration is a clear sign that Israel is deepening divisions between the two terror groups. Nevertheless, the payoffs to Hamas enhance its firepower in possible future rounds, meaning that Israel has to reduce the payoffs as much as possible rather than as the center-left suggests, show largess towards Gaza.

Lessons of the Gaza Conflagration

The latest flare-up in Gaza – a direct corollary of the Oslo Accords and the 2005 unilateral withdrawal from the Strip - is a sad testament to the limits of Israeli power and a forewarning against repeating the same mistakes in the West Bank.

Gaza Conflagration Highlights the Differences between Hamas and Islamic Jihad

Unlike Islamic Jihad, both Hamas and Israel have an interest in keeping the present round of hostilities short. The question is whether in the fog of battle, the two sides will succeed in achieving their mutual goal.

Why Israel Must Tolerate Hamas for the Time Being

Israel’s inability to thwart Hamas on the Gaza front, even as it persistently worsens the lives of the 20,000 Israeli citizens who live in the “Gaza envelope,” is a national shame. Yet PM Benjamin Netanyahu is correct that this pain must be borne as Israel focuses on the Iranian threat and Israel’s northern front.

What Should Be Learned from the Gaza Disengagement?

The debate over the interpretation of the clear and present danger from Gaza in the wake of the 2005 unilateral disengagement holds the key to saving Israel from the dangers attending the creation of a Palestinian state in the West Bank.