Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is in an unenviable position. Having been caught flat-footed by the worst terrorist attack in Israel’s history, his approval rating remains in the gutter.
Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza, stretching into its fifth month, and the terrible, some would say indiscriminate, damage the fighting has done to the 2 million Palestinians who live there have sullied Israel’s international reputation. Hamas’ military brigades have been dealt a blow, but Netanyahu’s insistence on “total victory” sounds as if he genuinely believes the organization is like a conventional army that can be wiped out.
The war is also forcing Netanyahu to engage in a difficult balancing act. On one side is President Joe Biden’s administration, by far Israel’s closest ally. On the other is Netanyahu’s governing coalition, stacked with far-right, ultranationalist ministers who don’t care about the Palestinians one iota, would rather toss the so-called two-state concept into the ash heap of history and wouldn’t mind pushing Palestinians in Gaza across the border into Egypt. Netanyahu can’t satisfy one without disappointing the other, which is why he has stonewalled calls for postwar plans in Gaza.
That is, until last week. After months of prodding from U.S. officials, Netanyahu finally released a rough outline on how he envisions Gaza’s future after the war. The document is less of a plan and more of a wish list of unworkable items meant to ensure that the most unflappable, hardheaded extremists in his Cabinet, such as Itamar Ben-Gvir, Israel’s national security minister, don’t bolt from the government. In the contest between the U.S. and the Ben-Gvirs of the world, the Americans have lost.
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