Israel concedes it may not be able to destroy Hamas
Despite five months of war in Gaza, Israeli intelligence officials admit the militant group eludes them
What happened
Israel has significantly degraded Hamas and reduced its remaining fighters to guerrilla warfare, but the Israel Defense Forces may not be able to destroy the militant group despite five months of brutal war in Gaza, Israeli intelligence officials told Britain's Telegraph on Wednesday.
Who said what
A month ago, "I would have definitely said" Israel can eliminate Hamas, but not now that the U.S. has "turned its back on Israel," an Israeli intelligence source told The Telegraph. Israel's twin aims of destroying Hamas and saving Israeli hostages seized Oct. 7 "are clashing with each other, and both can't happen," Israeli political analyst Mitchell Barak told The Wall Street Journal.
The commentary
IDF said it has "dismantled" 20 of Hamas' 24 original battalions, but "dismantled does not mean destroyed," and the remaining fighters "are still capable of waging a lethal insurgency," The Washington Post said. "The IDF tactical advantage is clear" in Gaza, said Haaretz military analyst Amos Harel. "But that is hard to turn into a decisive victory."
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What next?
The White House, which warns that Israel's heavy destruction and high civilian death toll in Gaza will leave it isolated and fuel an enduring insurgency, said Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu "agreed to reschedule" a meeting on U.S. alternatives to a full-scale Rafah invasion. Netanyahu canceled the meeting after the U.S. allowed the U.N. Security Council to demand an immediate cease-fire in Gaza.
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