Opinion Express View: Israel leaders must look beyond militarism

Reports from Gaza indicate that at least 20,000 Palestinians have died since Israel began its attacks in response to the terror strikes and kidnappings by Hamas on October 7. Over 8,000 of the dead are reportedly children and Hamas still holds more than 100 hostages in Gaza. The Israeli airstrikes on Christmas Eve and December 25 killed 100 civilians. Given this grim context, the statement by Israel’s military chief, Herzi Halevi, that the “war will continue for many months” so that “our achievements are preserved for a long time”, is cause for grave concern.

Halevi’s statement echoes the tone set by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. In an article in the Wall Street Journal on December 25, Netanyahu wrote that the Palestinian Authority (PA), which runs the democratically elected government in the West Bank, “funds and glorifies terrorism” and “educates Palestinian children to seek the destruction of Israel”. That is, the long-held principle of the “two-state” solution is not even being paid lip service anymore. The idea that not even the PA is a legitimate political authority has put Tel Aviv at odds even with its closest ally. Earlier this month, US President Joe Biden said that the Netanyahu government “can’t say no” to a Palestinian state and that the country is losing support from the global community because of its “indiscriminate bombing”. The UN General Assembly passed a resolution calling for an immediate ceasefire with an overwhelming majority on December 12, with just 10 countries out of 193, voting against it.

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Certainly, Israel was a victim of terrorism on October 7 and many countries including India have been sympathetic to its plight. But the larger issue in Israel-Palestine is a complex one, entangled in interpretations of history and identity, and compulsions of geopolitics and security. The UN estimates that at least 1.9 million refugees are coming out of Gaza. The scale of the humanitarian crisis and the fact that proxy forces supported by Lebanon, Syria and Iran are involved in the conflict threaten to widen it into a regional, multi-front war. A purely militaristic response that refuses to acknowledge the role of Palestinian political actors and blurs the distinction between terrorists and civilians is unlikely to yield dividends. The lessons from Ireland, or the many ethnic, internecine conflicts in Africa and other parts of Asia are important in this regard. Friends and well-wishers of both Israel and Palestine — in New Delhi, Washington, Berlin and beyond — must push for an immediate ceasefire. It is only then that the difficult process of building peace can begin.