Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu spoke to the press on Saturday, marking his first presser since the deadly Hamas attack on October 7th. He was pressed on a variety of matters, including Israel's goals, Iran's involvement, and his culpability in the original security failure.
Regarding the concern that Israel lacks a clear objective in Gaza, Netanyahu made it clear that the goal is to "completely defeat" Hamas.
Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu gives a conference from Tel Aviv, and begins by saying troops entered Gaza through the "gates of evil".
— Sky News (@SkyNews) October 28, 2023
The "supreme" goal of the operation is "completely defeat the murderous enemy and guarantee our existence", he says.
🔗 https://t.co/D81BqdJyRr pic.twitter.com/TeUNSXtddV
A common talking point, including one recently repeated by former Barack Obama NSA Ben Rhode, has been that Israel lacks a clear objective. There isn't much evidence of that, though. Clearly, Israel sees this as a war for survival and does not find it sustainable to leave Hamas in place. The objective is not in doubt, but the length and cost of the battle obviously can't be known until it is fought.
Still, Netanyahu made it clear that Israel is ready to do what is necessary.
NOW - Netanyahu: "This is our second war of liberation... We're going to fight... It will be the good over evil, light over darkness." pic.twitter.com/PIwAld7moj
— Disclose.tv (@disclosetv) October 28, 2023
When asked about Iran, the PM said that while he can't know if the Islamic republic was involved in the planning, Hamas gets 90 percent of its funding from the Mullahs.
🇮🇱🚨‼️ INTERESTING: Press Conference Netanyahu with the defense minister!
— Lord Bebo (@MyLordBebo) October 28, 2023
N: “It will be a long war!”
N: “Iran is supporting Hamas, 90% of their budget is from Iran”
Q: “Will you take responsibility for 7th October?”
N: “After the war we will investigate.” pic.twitter.com/7Tm1ruRNrT
The mention of this being a long war is telling. This isn't going to be the normal, in-and-out operation that Israel has conducted in the past, where some measure of proportional damage is inflicted before yet another ceasefire. Netanyahu appears to be prepping his people for a hard-fought battle that won't end until the objective of eliminating Hamas is met.
In the short term, that could get really ugly. In the long term, neutralizing Hamas could save thousands of lives over the course of the next few decades. It is unlikely much of the global community will show that kind of will, though. Calls for a ceasefire will only grow louder over the coming weeks, even if no other nation on earth would be expected to stand down in the face of such an attack.
Netanyahu's high point in his remarks was a comparison to Israel's original war for independence, stating "Never Again is now; this is our 2nd Independence War, humanity’s war against evil."
The primary takeaway from his presser? Agree or not with the decision, Israel is not going to stop this time. The strategy of tolerating various acts of terror from Hamas has failed. Nothing the global community, the mainstream press, or anyone on social media says is going to change that.
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