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Comment and Opinion

INSS: Looking at the Gaza Strip: From short term to long term, by Kim Lavi and Udi Dekel

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In the most recent escalation between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip, the message conveyed by both parties was that they are not interested in paying the price of a war that will ultimately return them to square one. At the same time, neither wants to allow the other to score success or to appear as if it is conducting negotiations with the enemy. Thus, in the Palestinian arena, Israel should give priority to its long term interests at the expense of its short term interests that focus on achieving calm in the area. It is preferable for Israel that the reconstruction of the Gaza Strip be conducted by means of the Palestinian Authority, so that the PA, and not Hamas, reaps the fruits of reconstruction in the eyes of the Palestinian public. It should therefore formulate a joint objective with the PA, Egypt, and relevant parties in the international arena, who have made aid to Gaza conditional upon its going through the Palestinian Authority. The objective must be to ease the humanitarian plight in the Gaza Strip and develop infrastructure under conditions of restored PA rule in the Strip. Joint action would serve as significant leverage over Hamas and would limit its room to maneuver. Israel has an interest in integrating the international community in this endeavor, as the involvement of an international task force in the Gaza Strip would serve to restrain Hamas and raise the price it pays if it chooses to return to violent resistance.

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