If you have been listening to anything Netanyahu has had to say for the last while, you will definitely have noticed that he likes using the phrase a “decisive victory” when discussing Israel’s enemies.
While some wonder what exactly a decisive victory means for Israel and what that would entail, others, including his own defense minister Yoav Gallant believe that his vision is nothing more than a pipe dream.
At least, that was the feeling until Saturday. Even after the bold and audacious pager bombs, we knew that although Hezbollah may have been curtailed, it definitely wasn't out of the game.
But following the successful assassination of none other than the head of the snake, Nasrallah, the sentiment in Israel and around the world has changed.
It started with the assassination of Ismail Haniyeh and Fouad Shukr, and from there, Israel has been a roll, striking down enemy targets and rocket launchers with equal might and precision, a result of the hailed Mossad's all-knowing, all-seeing eye.
According to the Daily Telegraph, "Israel’s hawks have long argued that only bombastic military action can protect Israel. They see a world where Hezbollah and Hamas are degraded to the point they pose no threat to Israel. And one in which Iran is sufficiently cowed that it stops funding its so-called axis of resistance for fear of inviting Israeli strikes on its ports and fragile water infrastructure."
So, even through Iran's proxy group the Yemenite Houthis still pose a formidable risk and even though the root of all of this evil, Iran itself, has yet to respond, things are looking very different indeed. In fact, even before Nasrallah was eliminated, Hezbollah allegedly asked Iran to attack Israel on its behalf, but they refused.
“We have reestablished our deterrent after Oct. 7 when it seemed to our enemies it was lost,” Sima Shine, the director of the Iran and the Shi’ite Axis research programme at the Institute for National Security Studies (INSS) in Tel Aviv explains. "Iran now has a huge problem. Everyone in the regime is in shock. They have no option but to recalibrate. Iran and its proxies understand now Israel is not in the mood for an attack from anyone any more and that if it comes, there will be consequences.”
Another Hezbollah specialist from the INSS, Orna Mizrahi, said that "The threats facing Israel have not disappeared but have been transformed. It is essential for Israel to understand these evolving threats in order to prepare effectively and to identify opportunities that offer strategic advantage.”
As Israel will soon face the first anniversary of that terrible day, the 7th of October 2023, it brings a measure of comfort that the IDF, the Shin Bet and teh Mossad are once again at the top of their game, and they won't be caught unawares next time the enemy rears its head.