| Israel’s military strategy is to demilitarise Hamas by degrading its capabilities so that it cannot attack again. Netanyahuhas dismissed the prospect of the Palestinian Authority running Gaza, a suggestion from Biden, and has rejected the idea of foreign peacekeepers brokering a deal, insisting that only the Israeli army could be trusted to make sure that Gaza stays demilitarised. The only stated and clear military goal is to “destroy Hamas”. But this is not “an achievable military goal”, Emma says, because Hamas is an ideological organisation that operates beyond Gaza in practical and political terms. Netanyahu has said that there is a chance the Israeli military would maintainindefinite security control over Gaza after the war ends, which suggests that the plan is to reintroduce a form of extended Israeli occupation over the strip. Biden has warned Netanyahu against this strongly. “Israeli officials have also discussed the possibility of having a buffer zone in Gaza – as Gaza is really tiny already, taking away more land for this would be massively controversial,” Emma says. Biden has warned Israel that “vengeance” is not a viable military strategy. He sees the danger in waging a war like this, as he remembers the Bush administration’s war in Afghanistan. “What you had was almost 20 years over which the Taliban grew stronger and stronger and reversed the original American military victory,” Emma says. “Biden clearly sees the danger in something similar happening in this conflict.” Netanyahu’s precarious position “Right from the beginning, it was clear that the vast majority of Israeli society held Netanyahu responsible for the attack,” Emma says. Even though Netanyahu, the longest-serving leader in Israel’s history, has a reputation for being the ultimate political survivor, this latest war feels like the beginning of the end for his time in power. Many have said that thoughts of his political future have influenced the way that he has prosecuted the war: “Netanyahu presented himself as the strong man who would keep Israel safe. The question in his mind is: if he managed a war that destroyed Hamas, could he redeem himself to the Israeli public and somehow cling on?” The humanitarian crisis The scale of the crisis in Gaza has led to humanitarian organisations and the United Nations to issue unusually explicit statements on the conflict. “The strength of their statements in condemning the situation in Gaza is a reflection of how, even in the context of a world with many very brutal, complex and terrible wars, this is a particularly dire situation in terms of the level of humanitarian suffering,” Emma says. Inside Israel though, there is little public pressure to curb the attacks on Gaza. Most people see the war as an existential campaign. When Emma asked one reservist about Biden’s warnings, and the military catastrophes in Afghanistan and Iraq, fed in part by civilian casualties from aerial bombing campaigns, he said: “British and American soldiers could go home, we don’t have anywhere else to go.” As we go into 2024, no end is in sight. This conflict will probably continue, leaving in its wake a trail of unfathomable destruction and death. If you are reading this on the app, over the Christmas period the headlines and sport will not appear. To get the full First Edition experience in your inbox every morning please sign up here. | 