Before I Return to the US: A Perspective on Operation Cast Lead

Before I fly back to the United States tomorrow I wanted to take a few minutes to share my thoughts about the last week, specifically the aura here in Tel Aviv as well as the mindset of the many people I have spoken to personally.

Nearly one week ago no one expected a full assault n Gaza by Israeli military forces. The status quo of the region had Hamas continue to reign rockets down on innocent civilians in the Negev while the Israeli government debated what the proper action or response would be to these unrelenting attacks. Yet not only was Hamas surprised by the wave of attacks the IAF launched last Saturday but the world was as well. No one saw it coming and the tatic of "shock and awe" proved to be the most rewarding of all for Israel.

As the death toll in Gaza rises due to the Israeli strikes, one cannot forget that although innocent lives are casualties of this conflict, the blame lies solely with Hamas. The analysts and apologists of the Iranian puppet in Gaza will have you believe that Hamas is the victim and Israel the aggressor once again, however the truth has always been that the victims are the innocent Israelis and Palestinians that fall under the true aggression of the terrorist regime in the Strip. Yes, Hamas was the "elected government", having won popularity in Gaza and favor among the Palestinian citizens there. However, where Hamas truly failed the Palestinians that elected it was taking the responsibility for caring for those Palestinians. Hamas had countless opportunities to broker peace with Israel, yet decided to fire rockets at innocent civilians instead. Hamas had the opportunity to give its citizens passage to and from Israel, provide new outlets for medical care, aid and job opportunities but instead decided to manipulate that ability to smuggle illegal arms and weapons from Iran through underground tunnels and across the Egyptian border. Finally, Hamas captured one of Israel's soldiers, and instead of sticking to agreements and promises, it used and continues to milk Gilad Schalit as a bargaining chip to free its own captured militants, extremists, and fellow terrorists. One exchange of prisoner's even I can understand to get our boy back home, but continued demands one after another is unacceptable. Where are the apologists when the subject of this kidnapped soldier is brought up? Where are the defenders of the Geneva convention and human rights advocates here? Answer: not a word to say and no where to be found.

So the Israeli government and the IDF sprung a tremendous and absolutely stellar surprise assault on the terrorist infrastructure of Hamas. One scholar and expert I spoke with personally described the strikes as "strategic genius", with the timing of the attacks and the focus on limiting civilian casualties as foremost in the initial planning. He went on to describe one of the major goals of this campaign in "setting Hamas back over 20 years in both command and military power", supplementing his explanation by stating that this goal had now been achieved. On one train ride this past week I spoke with a "lone soldier" in one of Israel's top infantry units. He described to me the atmosphere of his base as well as the morale of the troops stationed currently around Gaza. He told me that the IDF had made sure that this time (referring in contrast to the 2nd Lebanon War), things were going to go according to plan and there would be no confusion, at least not on the part of Israel. He also said that his unit and many others were being issued some of the newest high tech weapons, for higher precision attacks and once again to limit civilian casualties.

One thing I not only respect and admire but also (from a strictly military perspective) am totally baffled by, is Israel's dedication to the innocent victims of its enemies. No other country to my knowledge has dropped thousands if not millions of pamphlets and notices in civilian populated areas about when and where attacks will take place. Israel has done both in the 2nd Lebanon War and in this conflict as well. No other country ever calls the inhabitants of a building or house and tell them to vacate immediately because that structure would be targeted. As I've said before, the loss of life in Gaza is tragic, but no one cares more or weeps more than Israel when there are innocent victims of war. Clearly Hamas doesn't, or else the number of rockets raining down on innocent civilians would be zero. Hamas does the opposite, the latter of what any moral human being would do. It rejoices when innocent Israelis are murdered, it tries to profit when its own innocent people are killed, and furthermore it uses women and children as human shields and suicide bombers. Again, where are the human rights activists when these awful events occur? Where are the apologists then and where are they now?

So what of the possible ground operation? Well what I will say now, at 1:15 AM Friday January 3rd here in Tel Aviv is that in less than ten short hours I believe that ground incursion will begin. I also believe it is the right move to do, because the air strikes are not enough. Although the air assault dealt a massive blow to Hamas it did not defeat the terrorist regime entirely. However, unlike many hard rightists I do not believe a ground invasion of the Gaza Strip will get rid of the Hamas problem for Israel, nor will it be beneficial for Israel to remain in Gaza. Been there, done that, and paid for it. What Israel must do is use its tactical forces in Gaza as a means of creating a buffer between Israel and Hamas-controlled Gaza, making it clear to the regime that rocket attacks will not be tolerated ever again and that if Hamas wants peace, it will have to go through a proxy to do so. Despite my many misgivings about the UN, I still believe this buffer zone must be patrolled and monitored by a neutral UN peacekeeping force, similar to the one in southern Lebanon today. UN buffers are not the answer to Israel's problems but they are a step in the right direction. They might be the true means to finding solutions to Israel's "aggressive neighbor" problems.

As I leave Israel today I am confident Operation Cast Lead will be seen as a positive one for the people of Israel and ultimately for the innocent Palestinians victims of Hamas in Gaza as well. The status quo had to be changed, and this option was the only one Hamas would understand. My hope is that the leaders of Hamas finally realize their messages of terror and death have not worked in the past, do not work now, and will never work. Hamas MUST put down its arms, MUST relinquish military control of Gaza, and MUST give up its hate-filled, fundamentalist agenda for any possibility of peace. Too many innocent Israelis and Palestinians have already died because of it, and too many more may yet suffer the same fate.