What should Israel do?

Not saying either side is more victim, or more responsible, than the other.
How should the Israeli government respond to the recent barbarity?
If they go for military intervention (even if we were to ignore the pain many innocents were to suffer), this would NOT make Israel long term any safer.
On the other hand, I also don't think words or diplomacy would help either.

What would be best for the Israeli government to do?

Comments

  • pblakeney
    pblakeney Posts: 26,972
    I don't know what I'm talking about so I'll give this one a miss.
    Much like our government should do. Waiting on the "We can't take refugees." bit though.
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  • Jezyboy
    Jezyboy Posts: 3,537
    I guess they need to think about what Hamas was trying to achieve with the latest attack, and make sure they don't achieve it.

    It seems likely that Hamas wanted to provoke this kind of reaction, so is it just playing into Hamas's hands?

    OTOH from the Israel POV they now have quite a bit of international support to be really quite vicious, so perhaps it makes sense for them to take advantage.
  • DeVlaeminck
    DeVlaeminck Posts: 9,031
    I'm going to go for review its security measures as a first step.

    Longer term it depends what its end game is. No doubt Israeli's want peace but on what terms will differ.

    Politically they have allowed a situation where a 2 state solution is pretty much impossible unless over 500k settlers are going to be evicted from the West Bank.

    Personally I think they should be forced to do that as a first step at threat of sanctions if they don't.
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  • First.Aspect
    First.Aspect Posts: 16,697
    What should Egypt do?
  • joeyhalloran
    joeyhalloran Posts: 1,080
    It's a conflict that's been going for over 100 years and has history further back than that. I don't know what the solution is but I'm pretty sure whatever Israel do in retaliation, this and Hamas' attack will just go down in history books as another flash point in the longer term issue. So sad though.
  • rick_chasey
    rick_chasey Posts: 75,648
    How about both sides not committing outright war crimes?

    There’s a start
  • joeyhalloran
    joeyhalloran Posts: 1,080
    Easier to say as a 3rd party when it isn't your relatives that have been killed by those war crimes.
  • briantrumpet
    briantrumpet Posts: 19,537

    Easier to say as a 3rd party when it isn't your relatives that have been killed by those war crimes.


    Yes, indeed, but as the history of conflict resolution shows (I think), some sort of peace will depend on both sides - and in that, maybe mostly one side - looking forwards, not backwards, and whilst not forgetting what's been done to them, not letting past crimes and atrocities block future peace. Relentless retaliation against a whole population will only prolong the conflict.

  • rick_chasey
    rick_chasey Posts: 75,648

    Easier to say as a 3rd party when it isn't your relatives that have been killed by those war crimes.

    See how that argument works at the international court when you’re tried for your crimes.
  • joeyhalloran
    joeyhalloran Posts: 1,080



    See how that argument works at the international court when you’re tried for your crimes.

    It's obviously irrelevant how well it holds up in court at trial
  • rick_chasey
    rick_chasey Posts: 75,648
    edited October 2023
    So said Milosevic
  • briantrumpet
    briantrumpet Posts: 19,537

    How about both sides not committing outright war crimes?

    There’s a start


    Looks like US pressure has persuaded Israel to relent on the water issue, for starters at least... Blinken now being explicit that Israel shouldn't be committing war crimes even under heavy provocation. Meanwhile, Cleverly being very non-committal with Victoria Derbyshire. Which also reinforces the stupidity of the Tories' UK being willing to break international law in 'limited and specific ways'... it was always going to come back and bite them.

  • bonk_king
    bonk_king Posts: 277
    The tension has always been there in Israel. And I'll be honest, I haven't a clue how it all started so I did a bit of digging just to satisfy my own curiosity.

    There are quite a few informative videos on you tube detailing how it all started, and it goes wayyyyy back, thousands of years, right up to present day.

    Expecting people who hate each other, and have done from day one, to live together in harmony, is a none starter.

    But they don't even live together, not really, they occupy different regions of the same country, so are segregated to a degree....and they still can't get on!!

    The hatred between them will never go away, and consequently neither will the habitual skirmishes.

    What a world we live in.



  • In an extremely ignorant and simplistic way I see it like apartheid South Africa.

    Force them to get on with it and after generations maybe the pain will fade.

    Constant warring from either side of a wall is not a long term solution.
  • webboo
    webboo Posts: 6,087
    I have often wondered if you did some DNA profiling on all parties in the Israel area I wonder if there might some common ancestors.
  • briantrumpet
    briantrumpet Posts: 19,537
    This thread gives some hope, even if the voices against more violence seem minuscule compared with those who think that retribution won't make the problem worse.

  • TheBigBean
    TheBigBean Posts: 21,532
    Someone I know who just lost his parents said "In the long run, the only way forward is that of hope and peace"