Opinion Why Israel broke the ceasefire: For Netanyahu, war is just politics

Netanyahu’s move to dismiss Shin Bet director Ronen Bar revealed the conflicting positions within the Israeli government on the strategy to be adopted on the security and military fronts. Bar prioritised the return of the remaining Israeli hostages over the resumption of another military campaign. Netanyahu and his right-wing allies, on the other hand, prefer the military option. The voices of the families of the hostages held in Gaza and demonstrations in support of them, as usual, fell on deaf ears.

Saving the coalition government, passing the budget before March 31 and postponement of court proceedings against him are compelling reasons for Netanyahu to return to war. Itamar Ben-Gvir, former national security minister who resigned after the ceasefire with Hamas, agreed to return to Netanyahu’s government after the resumption of military operations in what he said was the “right, moral, ethical, and justified step”, reported in the Israeli newspaper Haaretz. Ben-Gvir’s party rejoining the government helps Netanyahu consolidate his position. The sad reality is that the political survival of right-wing leaders like Netanyahu depended on creating conditions that enable never-ending hostilities. War becomes the means to do everyday politics.

Netanyahu and his right-wing partners had to endure humiliation when people in Israel and across the world saw Hamas make a compelling show of the exchange of Israeli hostages. The relentless bombardment of the Gaza Strip from October 2023, aimed at the “destruction” of Hamas, has obviously not yielded the desired results. After widespread death and destruction, the Netanyahu government is back with a military campaign, with the same aim — “destroying Hamas” — by targeting its “governing and military capabilities”.

Israel had already violated the ceasefire when it blocked the passage of humanitarian aid to Gaza in early March in an attempt to pressurise Hamas to accept the extension of the first phase and release more hostages. The Trump administration too tried to pressure Hamas during their direct negotiations. Hamas, on the other hand, wanted the second phase of the agreement to begin immediately, which would see the release of the remaining Israeli hostages and Palestinian prisoners in Israel. Netanyahu and Trump are obviously trying to thwart the second and third phase of the agreement.

Israel’s compulsion to sign the ceasefire can be sourced back to the political circumstances in the US during the last days of the Biden administration and the impending inauguration of the Trump presidency. President-elect Trump wanted his special envoy Steve Witkoff to see that there is a ceasefire, however short-lived it is, by the time he took office. That objective was achieved. Despite his eagerness to change the status quo on various fronts, President Trump is now exhibiting elements of traditional American policy towards Israel, Iran and the West Asian region. In the US, the suppression of pro-Palestinian voices and the arrests and deportations of activists indicate that the Trump administration is falling into the traditional grove of unconditional support to Israel.

Immediately after Israel broke the ceasefire, Karoline Leavitt, White House press secretary, confirmed to the media that Tel Aviv had consulted Washington before restarting the massive military campaign. Like the Biden presidency, the Trump administration is fully backing Israel’s war. In her warning to Hamas, Leavitt mimicked Trump by stating that “all hell will break loose”.

The people of Gaza were still returning to the debris created by Israel’s military strikes when the bombings restarted. They are aware that it will take a long time to rebuild their homes and lives. Now with the resumption of large-scale attacks, all hope is shattered. The Palestinians have shown the power of the idea of sumud, of steadfastness, in extremely difficult conditions. But the world has failed them. Their fight against occupation has not resulted in tangible political outcomes, as Israel continues to permanently postpone peace

The writer recently retired as a Professor at the Centre for West Asian Studies at Jawaharlal Nehru University’s School of International Studies. He is the author of US ‘Perceptions of Iran: Approaches & Policies’ (2008)