WILL NETANYAHU WIND DOWN THE WAR?
On Thursday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also said that Sinwar’s death offered the chance for peace in the Middle East. But he warned the Gaza war is not over and Israel is likely to continue until its hostages are returned.
Over the past month, regional tensions have escalated after Israel launched a ground assault in Lebanon.
It is now planning a response to an Oct 1 missile attack carried out by Iran, which backs Hamas and Lebanese militant group Hezbollah.
Experts said Netanyahu wants to portray a positive narrative that Israel has strategic momentum, as Sinwar’s killing comes just weeks after the assassination of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah.
However, this does not necessarily change the fundamentals on the ground, said analysts.
“These militant groups accept that they’re going to lose their leaders as part of their war strategy,” Bohl said.
“The problem for Israel in ending the war in Gaza is that they have to find a way to get governing partners who could replace Hamas, and also find a way to deal with the remaining Hamas fighters that are going to be able to regenerate themselves from Gaza’s population,” he said.
Panikoff noted that the Israelis have “not been that interested” in coming up with a strategy to bring the war to a close, despite rumours of them working with the United Arab Emirates and the US.
He added that US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who will be travelling to Israel in the next five days for talks that will include post-war arrangements for Gaza, could help to figure out this end game.
“But in order for Netanyahu to take it, he’s also going to have to take a strategic position about how the war ends, and he hasn’t quite shown a readiness to do that,” Panikoff said.
