Elections have effectively entered the Israeli military... Political pressure begins to paralyze the system

In Gaza, restrictions are being imposed on soldiers confronting Hamas, while in Lebanon, the Israeli military has lowered its operational tempo, and in the West Bank, illegal outposts remain unchanged. As the Knesset elections draw closer, concerns are mounting that political considerations have deeply infiltrated the security establishment.

The newspaper Ma’ariv reports that the military has begun to feel the pressure of politicians as elections approach and as they attempt to draw the security establishment into the vortex of political conflict. Defense Minister Israel Katz has recently stepped back from the primary campaign within the Likud bloc, no longer needing to produce “boom boom” campaign videos, and can now return to his duties at the Ministry of Defense.

On Tuesday, Katz visited southern Lebanon alongside Deputy Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Tamir Yadai, Northern Command Commander Lt. Gen. Ravi Millo, and other officers. The defense minister is well aware of U.S. demands on Israel regarding Lebanon, Syria, and Gaza—demands that have led the Israeli military to refrain from carrying out targeted assassinations in the Strip for more than 12 days.

Along the northern border, the military is maintaining a low level of activity concerning operations in Hezbollah’s “refuge cities” in the Ali al-Tahir hills in Lebanon.

The defense minister announced that the military has no intention of leaving the positions where it is currently deployed. He stated, “The Israeli army is here to stay in the security zones in Lebanon, Syria, and Gaza, and to protect the entire State of Israel. We are up here, and they are down there; I have instructed the Israeli army to take all necessary steps to prepare for a long-term presence in the area.”

However, while Katz boasts in his statements, former defense minister and Knesset member, who is running for prime minister, Avigdor Lieberman, reveals that the military is completely paralyzed in Gaza due to directives from the political level.

The leader of the Yisrael Beiteinu party cited several incidents in which the military was forced to take Hamas’s calculations into account, refraining from targeting militants or halting maneuvers by the movement that mimic control over towns.

Israel is currently in its most problematic situation in Gaza, where army soldiers have effectively become “targets in a shooting range” for Hamas. Soldiers are prohibited from firing at militants located behind the yellow line, except when they perceive an immediate attack threat, with no other means available to remove the threat.

“While the army has achieved remarkable accomplishments across all battlefields,” according to Ma’ariv, the political level has suffered a resounding failure regarding “the day after” solutions in each of these arenas.

It remains unclear whether right-wing ministers are providing cover for the chaos caused by far-right extremist groups in the West Bank to mask their own political failures. More than 100 illegal outposts have been established in recent days and weeks, while the military refrains from dismantling them. “Is this an attempt to calm tensions following the attack in the village of Tel, or are these instructions from above by politicians seeking to safely navigate the primary elections?” according to Ma’ariv.

In the Israeli reality, anything is possible. Regarding the management of the relationship between the political and military levels, it seems there is little left to surprise the public. The events in the town of Qusra, in the northern West Bank, where settlers are besieging Palestinian homes, merely highlight the impotence of the army, the police, and Shin Bet, as well as the weakness of the security apparatus in the face of a group of criminals and thugs. Instead of “rounding them up” into a police car, taking them in for questioning, filing charges against them, and requesting their continued detention until the conclusion of legal proceedings, the security agencies are treating them as if nothing had happened.

Maariv concludes, “These thugs are the masters of the land, and every step taken by the system must receive their approval as criminals. The pinnacle of shame was reached when Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir, a day after the clashes, was forced to summon soldiers from Battalion 51 of the Golani Brigade to deal with the rioters.”