Israel’s widening military operations in Gaza and Lebanon – and looming response to Iran’s missile attack – are testament to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s need for political survival, a former Israeli diplomat told CNN.
“Netanyahu does not want to end the war,” Israel’s former consul general to New York Alon Pinkas told CNN’s Lynda Kinkade.
“He wanted to extend, to prolong the war in order to create … a war-like atmosphere which is important to him politically and expedient to him politically,” said Pinkas, who was speaking from Tel Aviv.
Netanyahu’s self-styled image as “Mister Security” seemed irrevocably shattered by the October 7 Hamas attack, but he has since staged a turnaround.
The war to eliminate Hamas in Gaza remains largely popular in Israel, but it has raised complex questions around long-term occupation, relations with Palestinians, and conflict with Israel’s neighbors including Iran-backed proxies such as Hezbollah in Lebanon.
Israel’s war goals have expanded to target Hezbollah, and Netanyahu’s cabinet is weighing its response to Iran’s October 1 missile attack.
“I don’t see him ending the war,” Pinkas said, citing Netanyahu’s repeated rejection of US President Joe Biden’s post-war Gaza plans and refusal to make any ceasefire-for-hostages deal.
Only a ceasefire in Gaza – where Pinkas believes Israel has already achieved its war goals – could bring about a de-escalation in Lebanon, yet the prime minister has “legitimately but wrongly refused to see that logic.”
