After launching numerous air strikes against Hamas targets in Gaza, Israel is prepared to launch a ground invasion. Israel has always done amazingly well in conventional warfare against Arab military forces. However, rooting out combatants who hide among civilians has never been something that conventional armies have done exceptionally well. Of course, an occupying army would help cut down on the rocket attacks-they can respond rapidly to launches. However, a conventional army also presents numerous targets for unconventional attacks and an occupation can be a political risk.
One risk is that Hamas can try to drain the resolve of the Israeli people by trying to bleed the ground forces. Losing friends and family in an occupation is never popular and Hamas presumably knows this. With the support of Iran, they can probably wage a fairly effective campaign.
Another risk is that the inevitable civilian deaths can be exploited by Hamas to bolster their support. As they gain local support, they can step up the attacks on Israeli forces and goad them into more retaliatory attacks. This will lead to yet more civilian deaths and thus further enhance the support given to Hamas. Of course, this tactic can be a risk for Hamas. People in Gaza might actually support Hamas less as things become more bloody.
There is also the general concern about how the rest of the world will react. Israel has never been a generally popular state and invading Gaza would generally not be seen as a positive action. Of course, the United States will stick with Israel-they are a critical ally.
From a moral standpoint,the ground war can be seen as morally acceptable in some ways and less so in others. On one hand, ground troops can be more precise in their attacks and can have better local intelligence (relative to air strikes). Of course, ground forces can still make errors and kill the wrong people (civilians). On the other hand, having ground forces invade Gaza escalates the conflict and can very well lead to more deaths. After all, the Hamas targets are not clear military facilities or locations. Rather, their fighters and rocket launchers are spread among the civilians. As such, the civilian population will be rather involved as Israeli ground forces move towards their targets. Unlike aircraft, the troops have to cover the ground relatively slowly and will no doubt be attacked along the way (thus increasing the odds of civilians being killed during battles).
Of course, Israeli cannot stop the rocket attacks simply by continuing to bomb from the air. While some people have argued that air power alone can win conventional wars, history (from WWII forward) shows otherwise. As such, unless Israel and Hamas can reach a political solution, Israel will almost certainly need to invade. And, once again, more people will die on all sides (Israeli, Hamas and civilians).
ISRAEL IS KILLING INNOCENT BYSTANDERS AND THEY KNOW IT. ISRAEL ALWAYS AND A PROBLEM WITH PALESTINE SO THEY CAN CARE LESS IF PALESTINIANS ARE DYING. SOMEONE NEEDS TO STEP IN A DO SOMETHING ABOUT THIS. WRITE YOUR SENATORS AND CONGRESS PEOPLE. SPEAK OUT AGAINST THIS UNETHICAL FIGHT!!!
Israel whether you think if you kill my family, burned my house, rape my sister that I should continue to love you
Israel whether you think if you expel me in the refugee camp that I need you to be grateful
Israel do think if I rebelled against you that I am of terrorists because I do not want to be your prisoner and servant
Israel do think I’m entitled to my land, my house, to travel when I want and not when you allow
Israel whether you think when you kill my brother, son, sister, that I need to tell you Thanks
Israel whether you think that I hate you because I think this
because I think that you’re not right because I think that you do not have the right to killing people
Israel I do not like those who kill, who say that the fight against terrorism
and the same doing most terrorism.
Pictures speak more than 1000 words
The struggle against women and children is a straight Crime
let’s shame
Israel, if you think that this is what I wratting and thinking is terrorism, then know that most of the normal world are terrorists for you
I’m amazed that practically all news outlets are never able to connect the Israel war dots. When it comes to end of year wars, like US government appropriations, Israel needs to show the need for weapons, etc. from the US. The neocons and military-industrially connected in the US make sure Israelis know that a war creates the perceptions and excuse to bring more security dollars and equipment into Israel annually.
Can anyone elaborate on this?
I don’t think that Israel needs to prove to America that it needs weapons. It can be safely assumed what would happen if Israel had no weapons.
Israel takes more abuse from enemy fire and from ignorant blogger-punduits than any country in the world. Even more than the US. And yet–ITS THE ONLY COUNTRY ANY OF THESE PEOPLE WOULD WANT TO LIVE IN, IF THEY LIVED IN THE MIDDLE EAST.
Apparently, the critics wouldn’t mind living under the conditions of the London Blitz, and every weird and strange argument is brought to bear against the Israeli response–which is the same response as every other nation in the enitire world and throughout history would have.
Israel is doing the difficult, but correct thing. There is no neocon conspiracy. There is only the 1300 year old war against Islam. And when that war stops–it will be the exception, not the rule of the last millennia.
We’ve exited a century of exeption, where wars of ideology were the rule. WW1, WW2, Korea, Vietnam. We’re back to small wars of blood and faith. It will never end. It just won’t. One need only read the comments above David’s to see we’re dealing with thoughts both alien and ruled by passions. No logic will win the day–ever.
Hamas can be defeated. Hamas amounts to an insurgent group, and there are real, scientific methods of dealing with them. Most of these scientific methods include laser-guided munitions and the best trained and most experienced army in the world–the IDF. This requires will. It requires the achnowledgement that well-meaning people like Jimmy Carter actually contributed to the violence because he refused to call the bad-guys: evil. He tried too hard to see from the point of view of aggressors. He refused to admit–and still does–that sometimes talking doesn’t work. Has it worked? has anything else but force worked? Force is almost never the answer–but when it is–you’d better be able to pull the trigger, or you die.
And many would rather that Israelis die, just so as to live by a romanticized version of morality. Just as the wrong-headed ideologues of history were willing to see millions die so that their dreams could be made real. Lenin, Hitler, Mau. Many times and in many forms, morality is the play-thing of convenience and the bored.
To Johnny I: Thanks you for reminding my to call my representatives. I will most certainly tell them I support Israel in their response to being fired on by rockets.
To Dream: The Israelis are reacting. No rockets from the Gaza=no Israeli attack. It really is pretty simple. I give your poem a 3 out of 10. Keep practicing.
To David: Too bad they couldn’t make a bumper sticker big enough for your post. All of the people with Gore/Edwards bumper stickers on their cars would surely put yours on too.