A picture of victory
, עודכן
The newspaper headlines at the end of Operation Protective Edge in 2014 warned of the possibility that the Gaza border communities would empty out. Live television broadcasts from the communities covered the loss of faith, the fact that it was no longer possible to continue living there. The media attempt to seed demoralization was extremely problematic, and, to put it lightly, mostly hurt the local residents who had for years demonstrated inspirational resilience and endurance. But the concern over a potential mass exile from the area was real, even within the communities themselves.
Two years passed. The opposite of the projected trend occurred. The Gaza border communities are enjoying demographic growth the likes of which has not been seen in many years. Many families from central Israel transplanted their lives to these communities and connected with the rare, high-quality community atmosphere that exists in the area. If we were searching for an image of victory from Operation Protective Edge -- this is that image of victory. The image of trucks unloading the belongings of families who have moved to settle in the kibbutzim and villages near the Gaza border reflects the depth of the concept of victory more than any image of a destroyed terror unit or the flag raised at a rocket launch site.
I know that I am nearly risking my life when I dare to say the word "victory" with regard to Operation Protective Edge. But I want to be honest with myself rather than be swept up by the current of the public. I refuse to take party in the festival of wailing and lamenting.
I will admit that two years is a short period of time in which to draw conclusions about the campaign. The data from these two years point to a trend, but it is too early to draw final conclusions. In the same vein, it is too early to paint the war as a failure, in contradiction of the facts. And what are the facts-
In the year 2000 -- only a few years after the agreement to partially withdraw from Gaza that followed the Oslo Accords, a short while after Yasser Arafat rejected then-Prime Minister Ehud Barak's unprecedented proposal at Camp David and at the beginning of the wave of Palestinian terrorist attacks that would come to be known as the Second Intifada -- the ongoing war crime of rocket fire at civilian populations began, first mainly in the Gush Katif area and then also in the western Negev. The 2005 disengagement from Gaza resulted in the escalation of this war crime and in the expansion of the target range. Former Minister Benny Begin's warnings of Katyusha rockets falling in Ashkelon made him a laughing stock in the eyes of former President Shimon Peres, who called him a "prophet of doom" and "yesterday's man" as his followers laughed. His warnings did not come close to reflecting reality. The entire central Gush Dan region of Israel, the capital Jerusalem and Ben-Gurion International Airport came under the line of fire when the conflict escalated, and the Gaza border communities were within daily firing range. For 14 years, life in the area was not life. Dozens of cease-fires and truces were grossly violated within hours. Operation Cast Lead and Operation Pillar of Defense were supposed to bring about substantial change, but they did not.
In the two years that have passed since Operation Protective Edge, reality along the border has changed unrecognizably, although the calm, unfortunately, is not absolute. The tough and painful blow that the IDF dealt to Hamas served as a deterrent that has changed the reality on the ground. The campaign did this without renewed occupation of the Gaza Strip, which is home to 1.5 million Palestinians over whom we have no control. The campaign did this decisively and intelligently, rather than with populist slogans about "toppling Hamas," which are no more serious than the populist slogans about "a diplomatic agreement."
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