Before the war in Gaza began almost two years ago, Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister, was not known as a risk taker. His rhetoric was bold, his deeds less so. Now, however, by sending the Israeli military into Gaza City, he appears to have dispensed with constraints.
The operation, which he says is necessary to defeat Hamas but is certain to increase Israel’s isolation as international anger mounts, has already killed many Palestinians and sent hundreds of thousands into flight southward. It risks the lives of the estimated 20 living Israeli hostages. It renders any cease-fire unimaginable for the moment. It has been questioned even by the military’s chief of staff.
To all this, Mr. Netanyahu’s response seems to be: Bring it on.
This week, he suggested that Israel should become a “super Sparta,” apparently meaning that the ancient Greek city-state that rose through discipline to become a great military power should inspire the country. Speaking at an economic conference hosted by the Finance Ministry, he said Israel might have to confront “isolation” through “autarky,” or economic self-sufficiency.
“He’s lost it,” Itamar Rabinovich, a former Israeli ambassador to the United States, said. “There are no more red lines.”
Vilified by the hostages’ anguished families, confronted by large street protests, fiercely criticized by alienated European allies for the bombardment of Gaza that has taken tens of thousands of Palestinian lives, Mr. Netanyahu only becomes more defiant.
The post Netanyahu and an Israel Without Restraint appeared first on New York Times.
