Hamas leader Sinwar says group ready for ‘long battle of attrition’ against Israel

In June, IDF spokesman Daniel Hagari stated that Hamas could not be destroyed completely, because Hamas is an ideology. The key word is “completely.” Hamas is a Muslim Brotherhood offshoot based on Islamic tenets, so Hagari is correct that Hamas is an ideology.

Israel can, however, dismantle and destroy the physical component of the Hamas operation, which it is now doing in Gaza.

To ensure the security of its citizens, Israel cannot afford to give over control of Gaza to any Islamic interests which aim to wipe Israel off the map. It must protect its strategic interests, which include complete control over Gaza, Judea and Samaria, the Golan Heights and East Jerusalem.

Jerusalem and Judea and Samaria are part of Israel’s heritage:

Jerusalem, Judea and Samaria is not only home to nearly a million Jewish Israelis. It is also known as the Biblical Heartland. More than 80% of the Bible was written or occurred here.

Also, militarily and strategically, “a hostile military force located in commanding positions” along Judea and Samaria could “pose a threat to the center of gravity of the State of Israel”:

Due to its location and topography, the West Bank (Judea and Samaria) has played a vital role in Israel’s national security since it was captured by the IDF in 1967. The West Bank is relatively small, covering 2,123 square miles (5,500 square kilometers), but it is situated immediately adjacent to the Israeli coastal plain where more than 70 percent of Israel’s population and 80 percent of its industrial capacity are located. Moreover, the West Bank is comprised largely of a north-south mountain ridge that dominates vital Israeli infrastructure along the coast, including Israel’s international airport, high-tech companies, and most of the major highways connecting Haifa, Tel Aviv, and Jerusalem.

As for the Golan Heights, it is “Israel’s best northern defense line.”

The pre-1967 border does not include Judea and Samaria, East Jerusalem, Gaza and the Golan Heights. A return to these borders, which the Palestinians (and their Organization of Islamic Cooperation supporters) demand for a so-called two-state solution, would be a setup for Israel’s destruction.

Israel’s complete military control over Judea and Samaria, East Jerusalem, Gaza and the Golan Heights is the only sensible option for its survival and its security against Hamas and other jihadist groups, despite their ideologies, and despite the threat from Sinwar about a “long attrition war.” Sinwar merely alerts Israel to the realities of the situation.

“Hamas chief Yahya Sinwar said Monday the Palestinian group had ample resources to sustain its fight against Israel.” Why? Because of aid from the U.S. and Europe.

“Hamas leader says group ready for ‘long battle of attrition’ against Israel,” France 24, September 16, 2024:

Hamas chief Yahya Sinwar said Monday the Palestinian group had ample resources to sustain its fight against Israel, with support from Iran-backed regional allies, nearly a year into the Gaza war.

Sinwar, who last month replaced slain Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh, said in a letter to the group’s Yemeni allies that “we have prepared ourselves to fight a long battle of attrition”.

Deadly fighting meanwhile raged on in the Gaza Strip, where medics and rescuers said Israeli strikes on Monday — which the military has not commented on — killed at least two dozen people.

The latest strikes came as Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant warned that prospects for a halt in fighting with Hezbollah militants in Lebanon were dimming, yet again raising fears of a wider regional conflagration.

Senior Hamas official Osama Hamdan told AFP at the weekend the group “has a high ability to continue” fighting despite losses, noting “the recruitment of new generations” to replace killed militants……