– Why is a pacifist and anti-war sentiment against Hamas growing among the Israeli people? Do you think he poses a threat to Netanyahu?
– Israel has deployed its deadliest forces against its enemies in Gaza and across the Middle East since the Oct. 7 attacks. It has leveled large swaths of the Gaza Strip and damaged Hamas and its allies in the region: Hezbollah, Iranian forces, the Syrian government and Iran-aligned militias in Iraq. It was supported by US forces in Iraq and the Red Sea, who launched heavy attacks against the Houthis in Yemen. However, Hamas and Hezbollah rockets continue to target Israel, Hamas remains strong in Gaza, the Houthis attack Israeli and international ships, and Hamas still holds more than 100 Israeli hostages. In fact, the only Israeli hostages who returned home were handed over under a diplomatic deal brokered by Qatar. Overall, for anti-war activists in Israel, these conditions raise fundamental questions about Israeli strategy and Netanyahu in particular. He is the man who has always described himself as Israel's greatest protector: the only person who could protect Israelis in a hostile region and lead the difficult diplomacy Israel needs to achieve its national goals.
– Do you think the two-state solution that the US has proposed to Israel is a good alternative to ending the conflict?
– The international community, particularly the major Western states and their partners in the Arab world, believe that the two-state solution is the only viable solution to the conflict between Israelis and Palestinians. Wealthy energy-producing Arab nations have linked (a) measures to normalize relations with Israel and (b) the provision of funds for the reconstruction of Gaza to a viable process leading to a two-state solution in which the Palestinians are united have a viable state. This second condition is extremely important because much of Gaza is destroyed and much of the population is close to famine.
The main problem is that polls show that 25% of Israelis support the creation of an independent Palestinian state, while 65% are against it. That's the opposite of what was a decade ago, when 61% of Israelis supported an independent Palestinian state while 30% opposed it. Adding to this complicated situation is the fact that more than 200,000 Israelis from the north and south of the country remain displaced and housed in emergency shelters and will not return to their homes unless they believe they are not being controlled by Hezbollah or Hamas are attacked.
Given these conditions, Israeli politicians, especially Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, have a strong incentive to oppose the two-state solution. And Netanyahu, facing a host of other political problems unrelated to the war, has made it clear that he rejects a two-state solution. There is also the possibility that Netanyahu is waiting to see what happens with Biden, hoping to reach a better deal with a new US president if Biden is defeated next November.
– Has Israel fallen into a long war from which it cannot get out?
– Israel has stated from the start that its goal is to destroy Hamas and bring its hostages home alive. Furthermore, Israel has no exit strategy or clear idea of what a post-war scenario might look like, other than that it does not want the Palestinian Authority, which governs parts of the West Bank and recognizes Israel, to take back control of Gaza. That condition also contradicts demands from the international community, including the United States, which says a reformed Palestinian Authority is key to Gaza's future. To make matters worse, a commission of inquiry would likely be set up at the end of the war, as was the case after the 1973 Arab-Israeli War (Yom Kippur War), which could lead to some rather unpleasant questions about the actions of the Israeli leaders before the July 7 attacks. Netanyahu would probably not welcome such questions. Ultimately, it is unclear how the war will end and how Israel can withdraw from Gaza in the short term.