Israel Must Finish Hamas — Even without Biden’s Support

By Philip Klein

Thursday, May 09, 2024

 

Over on the main site, we have posted our editorial on President Biden’s egregious decision to pause congressionally appropriated aid to Israel, and his threat to cut off more if Israel goes ahead with plans to finish off Hamas in Rafah. This is a grotesque betrayal of an ally during time of war — an ally Biden claimed has his “ironclad” support. But from the Israeli perspective, Biden’s decision cannot prevent the nation from its necessary goal of destroying Hamas.

 

Biden’s threat certainly will need to change Israeli battle plans, as the IDF will now have to consider tactically how to invade Rafah without U.S. support while still leaving enough in the tank to counter the threats from Hezbollah and Iran itself. A change in plans could very well lead to a more bloody conflict, with more IDF troops in harm’s way and more Palestinian casualties (as Biden would be cutting off deliveries of precision bombs if he follows through on his threats). 

 

Whatever it takes, however, it is crucial for the survival of Israel to go it alone if necessary.

 

Right now, thanks to Biden’s actions, all of Israel’s enemies are emboldened. Iran, and its proxies, see that U.S. support for Israel is shaky. Hamas has no reason to negotiate to free hostages, because Biden is protecting the terrorist group from Israeli action on its remaining stronghold in Rafah. The IDF war effort in Gaza is flailing, with Hamas retaking areas previously held by Israel as Biden has pressured Israel into retreating from them, citing humanitarian concerns. It’s been months since there has been sustained military pressure on Hamas. 

 

Were Israel forced by Biden to abandon its campaign against Hamas, it would be putting its population at risk from future attacks from Iran, Hamas, and Hezbollah. It would signal utter helplessness and vulnerability. Hamas will have shown that it can pull off any attack on Israel, no matter how ghastly, and as long as it digs in under major population centers, it can survive. 

 

If, instead, Israel were to go ahead with a major assault on Rafah now, it would help reestablish momentum in the war, and demonstrate that Israel is dedicated to routing out Hamas and is willing to do so at the risk of a loss in U.S. support. It would also send a powerful signal to Iran, for the future, that Israel is willing to take care of business even without support of the U.S.

 

More fundamentally, this is a crucial test of Israel’s national identity. Israel takes a lot of pride in being a sovereign nation. Israelis argue that the lesson of the Holocaust was that Jews cannot depend on others to rescue them, that they have to be prepared to fight for their survival even if they have to do so alone. Sacrificing Jewish security out of fear of reprimand from Joe Biden would seriously undermine this vision of Israel.