Former Prime Minister and current leader of the opposition, Yair Lapid, in a call to the Israeli government to define the objectives of the conflict against Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah in Lebanon: "The primary goal that the country must achieve at the end of the current conflict is: complete and stable security for all residents along the front lines in Israel - in the south and the north."
Yair Lapid's full message
"The State of Israel has gone to war. This is not just a legal or military definition - it is a comprehensive perspective that says we have a national goal that we will not stop until we achieve it. Such a goal is not defined only in terms of victory but also in terms of changing reality. We will not only defeat the enemy but also the reality they tried to impose on us.
"The conflict will conclude with a reshaping of the state in which we live. The role of the political echelon is to define the strategic objective from which all other goals derive. The question the political echelon needs to ask itself today is whether the war has a superordinate goal, from which goals such as weakening Hamas, returning the captives, restoring deterrence, and a sense of sovereignty, repositioning Israel as a Middle Eastern entity, and promoting understanding and partnership with regional states are derived."
"A decision on such a superordinate goal will define the secondary objectives of the campaign in strategic and national terms, not just on the battlefield. The ultimate goal that the country must achieve at the end of the current conflict is: complete and stable security for all residents along the front lines in Israel - in the south and the north. The war, and all the political and civil actions that follow, should lead to the residents of the Gaza periphery and the northern border returning to their homes and living with a sense of complete, long-term security. They should be able to raise their children there without fear of terrorism or the threat of further rounds of conflict endangering their lives.
"The people of Be'eri, Kiryat Shmona, Kibbutz Dan, Sderot, Metula, and Ofakim will know that their lives, economic futures, and their communities are protected and secure, and strengthening them is at the top of the national priorities. As long as this has not happened, the conflict is not over. Once the superordinate goal has been defined by the political echelon, its role is to ensure that all professional entities are synchronized with it. This is how a functioning and efficient government operates.
"The strategy translates into defined tasks and organizational processes within the security apparatus and civilian systems. All professional branches - military, economic, and administrative - build work plans that advance the superordinate goal from every possible aspect. The conclusion of the conflict cannot be limited to a military victory. The conflict will end with a change in reality and the fulfillment of all the following conditions: eradication of Hamas and Islamic Jihad in Gaza and the return of the captives to their homes.
"Gaza will be governed by a different Palestinian leadership with the assistance of the Arab world. Weakening Hezbollah in Lebanon and distancing it from the border. Mobilizing the international community to combat the Iranian terrorist axis. Above all: the national top priority will be the rehabilitation and strengthening of the communities, economically, physically, and in terms of security, along the front lines, to be carried out by an efficient and committed public service and a functioning government."
