President Joe Biden often mentions that he has been in his role in the Senate since the days of Golda Meir and the Yom Kippur War. It seems that he is adhering to the same American policy of embracing what is good for their interests, not ours.
Golda Meir refrained from a preemptive attack due to international pressures. The surprise attacks by Egypt and Syria caught the Israeli military unprepared. Thanks to the courageous battles of small units, they managed to hold the lines until the IDF mobilized, strengthened, and went on to defeat the enemy.
The Americans provided significant air support, primarily in terms of weaponry, but there was a heavy price to pay. The moment the IDF reached a critical point in the war and had the capability to defeat the Third Army (100,000 soldiers) that had surrounded it from all sides, the Americans demanded a ceasefire. Instead of Israel delivering a decisive blow from which the enemy would not have recovered, the forces were ordered to halt.
Even in the war in the south, the American approach remains unchanged. Biden delivered an emotional speech supporting Israel with one hundred percent. He also sent aid flights with weaponry and equipment, but again, the price was heavy. Instead of Israel leading the operation, the management was placed in American hands. Suddenly, there is talk of humanitarian aid for the residents of Gaza, and voices are heard about limiting the attacks in the north to avoid harming Lebanon.
Biden isn't giving a gift to Israel; he's providing a loan with interest. He's willing to provide significant sums to those in need, but, as with a mortgage, eventually, the loan needs to be repaid, and in the meantime, the house also belongs to the bank.
The excitement and euphoria that swept over Israel due to the unequivocal speeches from the U.S. are now being replaced by an understanding that the Americans are currently the ones running the show. They have less pressure to flatten Gaza, and in their vast country, there's no concept called "close border community." Netanyahu, in his typical fashion during military operations, continues to blur the seemingly unperceivable gap between declarations of annihilation, danger, and risk, and the draw in which these operations end.
Now is the time for the residents of the south, those fighting in the field, and the entire right-wing and religious public, as well as those who aren't, to explain to Netanyahu that without the destruction of Hamas, there's no point in ending the operation. What was is not what will be, in every sense.
