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<div class="gmail-inner-article-top"><h1 class="gmail-">Hamas makes military history: Experts</h1><p class="gmail-">Despite killing tens of thousands of civilians, Israel has not been able to defeat Hamas or achieve its objectives in Gaza</p><div class="gmail-another-name"><p><a href="https://thecradle.co/authors/news-desk-9" style="color:rgb(164,4,4)">News Desk</a></p></div><div class="gmail-another-name" style="margin-top:16px"><p><span>APR 10, 2024 - </span><font size="1"><a href="https://thecradle.co/articles/hamas-makes-military-history-experts">https://thecradle.co/articles/hamas-makes-military-history-experts</a></font></p></div></div><div class="gmail-inner-article-img"><img src="http://thecradle-main.oss-eu-central-1.aliyuncs.com/public/articles/6bb19ea2-f750-11ee-9e63-00163e02c055.webp" alt="" width="408" height="230" style="margin-right: 0px;"><span>(Photo credit: Sky News)</span></div><div class="gmail-inner-article-content"><div class="gmail-row"><div class="gmail-col-md-8 gmail-col-sm-7"><div class="gmail-article-content"><span><p><span style="color:rgb(14,16,26)">After
six months of brutal fighting and the withdrawal of the Israeli army
from the southern Gaza city of Khan Yunis, multiple Israeli and western
commentators have argued that Hamas is winning the war and making
military history in the process.</span></p><p><span style="color:rgb(14,16,26)">Sir Tom Phillips, a former British diplomat who served as Ambassador to Israel and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, </span><a href="https://www.haaretz.com/opinion/2024-04-09/ty-article/.premium/has-hamas-won/0000018e-c21d-d1b7-a3af-e71f0f590000"><span style="color:rgb(74,110,224)">wrote</span></a><span style="color:rgb(14,16,26)"> on 9 April in <i>Haaretz </i>that
Hamas had succeeded in its objective of "obtaining the release of as
many Palestinians held in Israeli prisons as possible, and of
re-asserting themselves as a force to be reckoned with."</span></p><p><span style="color:rgb(14,16,26)">He
added that Hamas had survived "the IDF onslaught for longer than any
war Israel has ever fought" and in "doing so, they have thoroughly
dented Israel's much vaunted deterrent status. In brief, and with
daunting potential long-term consequences for Israel, the IDF no longer
looks invincible."</span></p><p><span style="color:rgb(14,16,26)">Hamas
has blocked a potential normalization deal between Saudi Arabia and
Israel, which looked inevitable before the war began on 7 October, and
put the Palestinian issue "back squarely on the international map" after
years of the Palestinian Authority (PA) failing to do so.</span></p><p><span style="color:rgb(14,16,26)">A
final victory for Hamas, Phillip notes, is the “head-spinning speed of
Israel's post-October 7 delegitimization in the eyes of many in the
world.”</span></p><p><span style="color:rgb(14,16,26)">On 8 April, Israeli journalist Amos Harel similarly </span><a href="https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/2024-04-08/ty-article/.premium/one-step-away-from-victory-as-israels-soldiers-march-out-of-southern-gaza-really/0000018e-b9ef-df26-a99e-f9ffd03f0000#selection-1421.0-1421.120"><span style="color:rgb(74,110,224)">wrote</span></a><span style="color:rgb(14,16,26)"> in<i> Haaretz </i>that Israel's primary goals in Khan Yunis "haven't been achieved."</span></p><p><span style="color:rgb(14,16,26)">Following
the withdrawal of the 98th Division from the southern Gaza city, Harel
noted that the Israeli army's “two goals were the capture of top Hamas
officials in Gaza and the rescue of the Israeli captives currently held
by the Palestinian Resistance in Gaza.”</span></p><p><span style="color:rgb(14,16,26)">"The
public should be told the truth: The enormous death and destruction the
IDF is leaving behind in Gaza, alongside quite a few losses on our
side, aren't currently bringing us any closer to achieving the war's
goals," he concluded.</span></p><p><span style="color:rgb(14,16,26)">In an </span><a href="https://www.ynet.co.il/news/article/yokra13875990"><span style="color:rgb(74,110,224)">analysis</span></a><span style="color:rgb(14,16,26)"> in <i>Yedioth Ahronoth</i>,
Israeli political analyst Nadav Eyal explained that Israel had wished
to restore its power of deterrence, eliminate Hamas, and free the
captives held by Hamas in Gaza. But none of these objectives have been
achieved.</span></p><p><span style="color:rgb(14,16,26)">"Israel's
failure is not based on presenting the goals of the war – which were
fully supported by all Western countries. The failure lies entirely in
the execution," Eyal wrote, adding that "war is not won just by killing.
A complementary political act is needed."</span></p><p><span style="color:rgb(14,16,26)">The first failure, according to the report, was "the civilian suffering in Gaza."</span></p><p><span style="color:rgb(14,16,26)">"Those
who want to overthrow the rule of Hamas in Gaza do not conduct a
Roman-style revenge campaign, carry out a protective wall or retaliatory
action as if it were the 1950s."</span></p><p><span style="color:rgb(14,16,26)">The
Israeli commentator also blamed Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu for
his attitude towards Washington. "Netanyahu's public and evil
confrontation with the Biden administration only emphasized Israel's
weakness," he said.</span></p><p><span style="color:rgb(14,16,26)">Eyal
also noted that Israel had become isolated in the international
community and that even its allies in Washington and Brussels were
beginning to turn against it.</span></p><p><span style="color:rgb(14,16,26)">"Not
only has (Israel) lost support in most of the West, and is very close
to an arms embargo from Europe, even among its great ally, the tectonic
plates are in motion."</span></p><p><span style="color:rgb(14,16,26)">On 27 March, Israeli intelligence officials also noted the change in Washington. They </span><a href="https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2024/03/27/israeli-intelligence-admits-may-not-destroy-hamas/"><span style="color:rgb(74,110,224)">told</span></a><span style="color:rgb(14,16,26)"> <i>The Telegraph</i> that
the Israeli government's stated goal to "eradicate Hamas" in the Gaza
Strip has become unachievable after the US "turned its back" on Tel Aviv
by abstaining during a UN Security Council (UNSC) vote earlier in the
week.</span></p><p><span style="color:rgb(14,16,26)">"If you'd asked me
this a month ago, I would definitely say yes [we can eliminate Hamas]
because, at that time, the Americans were backing Israel," an Israeli
intelligence official told the British daily, reportedly suggesting this
assessment "had now changed."</span></p><p><span style="color:rgb(14,16,26)">"The
US doesn't support going into Rafah, which they did before, so the
cards right now are not good, meaning Israel has to do something
dramatic and drastic to change the momentum and climate," the source
added, highlighting that "pressure is mounting on Israel to reach some
sort of a deal, which means Hamas could survive. Both Hamas and the
Iranians are playing on that."</span></p><p><span style="color:rgb(14,16,26)">According
to the official, the belief inside the Israeli security apparatus is
that Hamas is "focused on surviving until the summer," when the US
election campaign will go into full gear.</span></p><p><span style="color:rgb(14,16,26)">Speaking
on the Turkish channel Haber Global, military analyst and retired
colonel Eray Gucuer also suggested Hamas is winning the war while
discussing the Israeli withdrawal from Khan Yunis ahead of a presumed
assault on Rafah.</span></p><p><span style="color:rgb(14,16,26)">"If
the Israeli army really is in a situation where it could not attack
Rafah except by withdrawing its brigade from Khan Yunis, this means that
it effectively lost the ground war."</span></p><p><span style="color:rgb(14,16,26)">"Israel,
in this war, almost completely destroyed Gaza and killed thousands of
civilians. However, the Qassam Brigades still exist. Until this moment,
it has military superiority on the ground … no one with military
experience can hide his admiration for the amazing tactics adopted by
Al-Qassam... Indeed, they are writing history."</span></p><p><span style="color:rgb(14,16,26)">"Imagine,
since the beginning of the war in Gaza and until today, we still hear
about Beit Hanoun and Ben Lahia, Al-Nasr neighborhood, and Al-Zaytoun
neighborhood. Why? Because the Qassam operatives invented a tactic for
the first time in my life that I have seen in the history of guerrilla
wars," he concluded.</span></p></span></div></div></div></div>
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