The unconditional military and diplomatic support of Israel from many Western countries has exacerbated internal divisions in the UN Security Council and seriously affected its ability to act.

Hamas cannot be destroyed

Since October 7, IDF Chief of General Staff Herzi Halevi has spoken of dismantling, rather than eliminating Hamas and this term indirectly recognises that even a protracted war will not be able to destroy the resistance group. In mid-February, Israeli military intelligence assessments showed that even if the regime eliminated the military potential of Hamas, it would still continue to operate in Gaza.

In March, the U.S. intelligence community said in its annual report that Israel was likely to face resistance from Hamas “for years to come”. Many Western officials have also recognised that Israel will not be able to suppress the resistance of the Palestinians, their will to freedom and their desire to create their own State of Palestine. The EU’s foreign policy chief said in February that Israel needed a political, not military, solution to the conflict with the Palestinians. Speaking during a panel discussion on the side-lines of the Munich Security Conference in Germany, Josep Borrel warned that Israel would not be able to defeat Hamas militarily.

Many also note the preposterous failure of the UN. Even Secretary General Antonio Guterres, who was declared persona non grata in Israel, admitted that “we (the UN) have no real power, let’s be honest. The only UN body with some power is the Security Council, but this body is paralysed too”.

A representative of the Israeli armed forces also disputed Netanyahu’s military objective a........

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