Gaza: Netanyahu Is Way Beyond Delusional.

Netanyahu insists on continuing the war in Gaza. His intention is to root out Hamas, but every sentient person already knows that will never happen. The IDF could be in Gaza for a decade, and still, Hamas would not be decimated. There are several reasons for that: start with the concept that you can't kill an idea, however loathsome it may be. Sophocles.

Next comes the fact that there are at least two million Gazans on the ground, and Hamas has no difficulty blending in with the civilian population. Finally, no internal force exists in Gaza capable of breaking Hamas' stranglehold on the territory.

Add to that that the Netanyahu government is basically treating the remaining hostages as expendable chess pieces. We all know that the twenty-five who are still alive will not return as long as the IDF is in Gaza. That must be pure agony for the families. 

Finally, Netanyahu shapes government policy in light of what he can get away with vis-à-vis the Americans. That's why we're finally beginning to see some daylight between him and Trump. It was not insignificant that the American president deliberately did not visit Israel during his Middle East trip. Netanyahu got the message and is pissed. 

So, in the end, his government has to learn the hard lessons that Israel did in the past. Think of the West Bank, Syria and especially Lebanon. War, followed by stalemate and ultimately withdrawal. That fact escapes no one other than Netanyahu. It's the ultimate zero-sum game.

The Hamas terrorist threat will only end when conditions are such that they can renounce terrorism, and that will never happen as long as Netanyahu and the current Hamas leadership are in place. War begets war, not peace. The cycle of war continues. Peace can only come with land swaps and mutual security guarantees. Even a fool knows that.