Hamas is Winning the War in Gaza And It’s Israel’s Fault

Following the massacre and kidnapping of Israeli civilians on October 7th, every action that Israel has taken furthers Hamas’s aims for this conflict.

https://apnews.com/article/israel-hamas-11-1-2023-children-killed-4a352398b32887e60a658e0270f0a021

I was recently listening to a podcast with CNN’s Fareed Zakaria during which he lists what he believes to be Hamas’s war aims, and I was struck by how Israel is accomplishing many of their goals for them.

Fareed outlined the following as Hamas’s objectives:

1. Elicit a Massive Israeli Military Response: This aims to cause immense suffering among Hamas’s own people but also bring global attention to the Palestinian cause.
2. Prevent Normalization with Arab Nations: A strategic goal to keep Saudi Arabia and other Arab countries from forming closer ties with Israel.
3. Put Israel on the Defensive: seed chaos and uncertainty within Israeli society.

And speculatively, I would add a fourth:

Start a Regional Conflict: Potentially broadening the conflict beyond Gaza.

In stark contrast, Israel appears to only have one stated objective:

1. Destroy Hamas