The bottom line is that the reason the cabinet has not carried out any of options is that all of them have huge downsides and unpredictable upsides.
By: Yonah Jeremy Bob – The Jerusalem Post; jpost.com
Though at press time, most of the nation was focused on individual battles and hostages in the 22 Gaza border communities which the IDF was still retaking, the fateful question is what the security cabinet will decide to do against Hamas.
That cabinet decision could frame Israeli-Palestinian relations and many other issues in the region for years to come.
A wide variety of options have existed since Hamas took over Gaza in 2007 from the Palestinian Authority, including everything from: 1) a permanent reconquest of Gaza; 2) toppling Hamas completely, but then handing Gaza back to the Palestinian Authority and/or a multinational force. 3) Occupy Gaza for weeks or months with the goal of killing most of the current Hamas leadership and its military commanders, but then allowing it to retake control afterwards in the hope that such a deep wound will restore deterrence; or 4) a more limited ground invasion similar to the 2008/09 or 2014 Gaza wars.
cont’d…