An Israeli call to avoid repeating the mistakes of the Gaza war during the upcoming confrontation with Hezbollah.

When all signs indicate that a renewed confrontation with Hezbollah is approaching, Israeli calls have increased to discuss the time to rid themselves of the illusions that accompanied the fighting against Hamas, and the repeated talk of absolute victories that have not found their way to implementation on the ground.

Michael Milstein, head of the Palestinian Studies Forum at the Dayan Center at Tel Aviv University, noted that "after about a year of recording one of the most significant achievements in the Iron Swords War, represented by the fatal blow to Hezbollah, which posed a long-term strategic threat to Israel and served as a central stronghold for Iran in the Middle East, the need to return to a broad campaign in Lebanon has become essential to ensure that the attack of October 7, 2023, does not repeat itself, as preventing any emerging threat in Lebanon is a matter of time."

He added in an article published by Yedioth Ahronoth, translated by 'Arabi21', that "the continued availability of a mix of the party's motivations, the support provided by Iran, and the difficulty of disarming it means the emergence of a troubling threat to the occupation, as a lot of weapons are smuggled into Lebanon; the party is being rehabilitated, including appointing leaders and recruiting new elements, which means they will not agree over time to absorb the equation imposed by Israel."

Milstein explained that "the broad consensus regarding the war that erupted in Lebanon until last year, and that which may soon be required, stems from the fact that the conflict in this arena is based on specific and sober goals, and a political effort complementing the military effort, unlike the campaign in Gaza, which was already successful militarily, but failed strategically by invoking illusions, wishes, partisan considerations, empty slogans, and plans of illusions that collapsed with the end of the war, along with harmful adventures like the attack on Qatar."

He pointed out that "all these Israeli behaviors during the war significantly harmed Israel's international standing, accompanied by an internal debate about the campaign's objective, ending with American implementation, limiting its scope, and placing it before realities, most of which are unsuitable for it. Therefore, in the face of a potential campaign in Lebanon, Israel must adhere to the policy it adopted against the party since October 7, 2023, and avoid adopting the characteristics of the war in Gaza."

He emphasized that "it is essential for the potential upcoming war with the party to have specific limits in time and place, and to be based on achievable goals, focusing on 'cleansing' the area south of the Litani from security threats, which may require renewed ground maneuvers in southern Lebanon, alongside attacks throughout the rest of the state, including Beirut, instead of the empty slogans used in the war against Hamas."

The writer also urged the occupation to "maintain extensive coordination with the international system, so that Israel does not face severe pressures as happened in the Gaza Strip, where its sole responsibility and freedom of action are gradually being violated, because the complete disarmament of the party, as is also claimed for Hamas, is a justified goal, but it requires deep thinking regarding its feasibility, and in both cases, it is not certain that the maximum ambition will be achieved unless that area in southern Lebanon is occupied, and the army decides to stay in these territories for a long time."

Milstein added that "on the other hand, there are goals that are not ideal, but may be the worst at the moment: in the case of Hamas, preventing escalation through actual control of the Philadelphi Corridor and the Rafah crossing, and implementing the Lebanese model for ongoing threats, until Israel decides to launch a broad campaign against Hamas in the future; and in the case of the party, ensuring freedom of action, cleansing southern Lebanon of threats, and enhancing international pressures, and the Lebanese government must act decisively against the party, without excessive expectations at this stage."

He noted that "it is easy to mock and claim that this is defeatism in the spirit of October 6, but it is advisable to arm oneself with a sober and critical stance, which was not present before October 7, and after it, and to understand that insisting on illusions, as appeared in Gaza, leads to a quagmire, which did not end in more severe harm thanks to the intervention of President Donald Trump."

He clarified that "it is interesting, by the way, that the demand for the complete disarmament of Hamas and the party is often raised by those Israelis who created the concept of October 7, and believed that the DNA of extremist Islamic elements could be changed through economic temptation, a gap that will never be realized, of course, and they now cling to the belief that through military pressure it would be possible to force the movement and