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Despite the Ongoing War, Israel Must Build Up Its Natural Strengths

An Israeli flag flies at a past Israel Day Parade.

Since October 2023, the State of Israel’s main strategic vector has been a campaign against enemies in the region centered around Hamas in Gaza, Hezbollah in Lebanon, and Iran. This campaign is nearing its end. In the coming months, the open challenges will be decided. Whether by force, agreement, or a combination of the two, the issues of the hostages and Hamas’s full disarmament and removal in Gaza as well as the nuclear project in Iran will reach decisions.

The other challenges are undergoing processes of change that are mostly positive from Israel’s perspective. In Lebanon, a new order is taking shape, influenced by the weakening of Hezbollah. In Syria, a new order – not without risks – is being built without the presence of Iran and its proxies. In Judea and Samaria, the system is converging around the question of the day after Abbas; and the Trump administration is pushing for the promotion and expansion of the Abraham Accords and the integration of Israel into the region.

In this situation – even if the military operation in Gaza continues for several more months or an Israeli or Israeli-American campaign is conducted against Iran – it is clear that within six months to a year at most, Israel will emerge from the war into a reality of the continuous use of force.

It is appropriate to return to the basics of David Ben-Gurion’s national security strategy and realign the national focus from the security level “Strike Force” to the national level “Prime Force,” as Ben-Gurion did after the War of Independence. One of the basic conventions of his strategy is that Israel should strive as much as possible for long periods of national capability-building and reduce as much as possible the time it takes to transform into a “Strike Force” for the purpose of defeating enemies.

The ongoing mobilization and activation of the “Strike Force” since October 2023, along with the clear victory already achieved and its expected completion in the coming months, gives even greater validity to this principle. Unlike in the days of Ben-Gurion, the “Strike Force” will remain in the form of increased regular and permanent service and in the periodic but significantly reduced mobilization of the reserves. This will make it possible to maintain ongoing security efforts across the various arenas.

A significant acceleration of “Prime Force” national efforts – in terms of security, the economy, and society – is needed to place Israel on a path of renewed strength. I will not touch on the regional and international political aspects, though extensive action must also be promoted in these areas. One, for example, is the effort to enlarge Israel’s “Competitive Identity.”

The Israeli government’s work plans for 2025 show noteworthy efforts to accelerate the development of national strengths. The main challenge is the national need to make a substantial leap forward in the arrangement, inclusion, and implementation of core components of the next national strength. To this end, it is important to focus execution on core issues, consolidate existing plans and their completion, allocate executive attention (ministerial committees, teams of Directors General), abolish execution barriers, and move forward vigorously and quickly to execute clear planning goals.

Israel should define a limited number of national efforts, the implementation of which would be led by the executive branch. Without ignoring other important efforts, the focus should be on those that can provide a public and business growth engine for other issues as well. Some, like the housing issue, are already being addressed.

The following are what I consider the top five national projects:

  1. National public transportation network: Israel needs to accelerate construction of an integrated network of public transportation solutions that will provide a comprehensive, relevant, and available door-to-door response to the population’s residential, employment and service needs. This network includes the deployment of several international airports, including one additional major airport parallel to Ben-Gurion Airport; a passenger and cargo rail network; (electric) buses; and improvements in maritime access to Israel. This network must connect the periphery to the center in order to expand the connection between housing and employment solutions. In terms of cost, it should be accessible to all segments of the public. Metropolitan transportation authorities will be needed to best adapt the plans. Reducing the scope of vehicle use will also require providing a respectful response to transportation needs on Shabbat.
  2. National computer network: Israel must complete both a leap forward in physical communications infrastructure (cellular and fiber optics) in a way that allows for bandwidth tailored to future needs and the full digitization (applications, cloud infrastructure) of national and local services and supporting infrastructure for businesses.
  3. Advanced computing infrastructures: Israel must significantly accelerate the establishment of the computing infrastructure required for artificial intelligence needs, the promotion of a national response to the challenge of quantum computing, and the supporting frameworks that enable the implementation of these capabilities. The implementation of national plans for AI is currently too slow to keep pace with developments in the field.
  4. Health and welfare response to population growth: The expected growth requires a significant expansion of the pace and scope of construction of response infrastructure. There is already a National Strategic Outline Plan at the Ministry of Health and the Planning Directorate for Health Institutions. There are plans to expand the response to the challenge of an aging population, but the necessary increases in infrastructure and manpower must be accelerated.
  5. A relevant and strong security solution over time: Security capabilities are a key component of the “Prime Force,” and in the current period also a significant engine of technologies and exports. During the war, the defense establishment received – and will continue to receive – increased resources to create a robust response after the revelation of insufficiencies in October 2023 and thereafter. The historical phenomenon of waves of increases and decreases in the IDF’s response capacity must be stopped. This time, lessons must be learned and a response built that will create a strong and relevant army and security system while avoiding excessive reductions in investment during periods of apparent calm. The goal is to ensure that the investment is carried out not as a concentrated effort but as an ongoing process over decades. This will require close examination and control by elements within and outside the IDF.

Alongside the five “national projects” will be some “national challenges.” The legislative branch (the Knesset) should lead the handling of these challenges as a basis for strengthening its position (see below), and because they require dialogue, agreements, legislation and control of implementation processes. I have tried to define what I consider the five “national challenges” on which to focus (though this is of course open to discussion):

  1. Rebalancing the three branches of government: Defining the relationship between the three branches and returning powers and capabilities to the legislative branch. The executive branch should focus on the efficient execution of processes. One way to do this is to significantly reduce the number of ministers and stop viewing the Knesset as an “employment solution” for legislators. Small ministries should be consolidated into “super-ministries.” A limited number of ministers should serve as horizontal projectors (by, for example, leading the integration of “national projects”). All others should return to essential key roles in the legislative branch. At the same time, the process of transforming the judiciary – mainly the High Court – into a legislative branch (“legislators in judges’ robes”) should be stopped. The determination of norms and principles should be returned to legislators. Judges should focus on examining compliance with the law.
  2. Integrating the ultra-orthodox into the economy and sharing the civic burden: The Israeli economy will have difficulty functioning if the growing ultra-orthodox population does not share in the national security effort and the economic burden. A fundamental change in the current situation will require agreements that address the unique needs of this population.
  3. Eliminating crime in Arab society: Organized crime is a source of chaos at the national level and hinders the normal development of Arab society. Significant efforts are being made to deal with it, but close monitoring of the effectiveness of these efforts as well as legislation are required.
  4. Lowering the cost of living by increasing competitiveness: The cost of living in Israel is a national problem that requires serious solutions. The many efforts in this area do not sufficiently address the main problem: the concentration of power in key industries in the hands of a few corporations and the lack of competitiveness. A legislative and practical leap is needed to increase competitiveness and reduce the control of these corporations.
  5. Reconstruction of the South and the North: Considerable efforts are being made on this issue as well, but the depth of national commitment to the issue and the need to assist and develop the population will require dialogue, in-depth monitoring, and legislation.

The next strategic vector of the State of Israel, after stabilizing a desirable security environment and perhaps even a political one for the country in the coming year, is a significant acceleration of national strengths. To this end, Israel should begin a strategic process of defining a limited number of “national projects” and responding to “national challenges” to strengthen its capabilities with a forward-looking vision.

Col. (res.) Shay Shabtai is a senior researcher at the BESA Center and an expert in national security, strategic planning, and strategic communication. He is a cyber security strategist and a consultant to leading companies in Israel. A version of this article was originally published by The BESA Center.

The post Despite the Ongoing War, Israel Must Build Up Its Natural Strengths first appeared on Algemeiner.com.

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French Official Tells Paper Arab Countries Will Condemn Hamas, Trying to Get Palestinian Statehood Recognized

French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot speaks to the media on the day he attends the European Union Foreign Ministers council in Brussels, Belgium, July 15, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Yves Herman

Arab countries will for the first time condemn Hamas and call for its disarmament early next week at a United Nations ministerial event in New York, a move meant to lure more European countries to recognize Palestinian statehood, France’s foreign minister said on Saturday.

In an exclusive interview with French weekly Le Journal du Dimanche, Minister of Foreign and European Affairs Jean-Noel Barrot said the move was part of a long-planned initiative between France and Saudi Arabia.

“For the first time, Arab countries will condemn Hamas and call for its disarmament, which will seal its definitive isolation. European countries will in turn confirm their intention to recognize the State of Palestine. Half of European countries have done so, all others are considering it,” Barrot told the JDD.

“The British Prime Minister has stated his intention to do so. Germany is considering it at a later stage. We will launch an appeal in New York for other countries to join us in order to set in motion an even more ambitious and demanding process that will culminate on September 21,” Barrot added.

On Thursday French President Emmanuel Macron announced France would formally recognize the state of Palestine at the U.N. General Assembly on September 21, drawing condemnation from the U.S. and Israel.

Earlier on Saturday Italian Prime Minister Georgia Meloni called it counterproductive to recognize a Palestinian state before it is established.

On Friday a German government spokesperson said there were no plans to recognize a Palestinian state in the short term.

At the upcoming United Nations event on Monday and Tuesday, France and Saudi Arabia plan to lay out a proposed post-war roadmap leading to a two-state solution covering security, reconstruction and governance, which will be compatible with the Abraham Accords negotiated by US President Trump, Barrot said.

The French minister added that in coming weeks the European Commission would take a tougher stance on Israel and demand a stop on building of any new settlement projects in the West Bank, and also an end to militarized policing of humanitarian aid distribution.

Barrot also called on fellow European countries to demand a removal of the financial blockade on the Palestinian authority so it can receive 2 billion euros he said it is owed.

The post French Official Tells Paper Arab Countries Will Condemn Hamas, Trying to Get Palestinian Statehood Recognized first appeared on Algemeiner.com.

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Jordan and UAE Drop Aid Into Gaza in First Airdrop in Months, Jordanian Source Says

An airplane drops humanitarian aid over Gaza as seen from northern Gaza Strip July 27, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Dawoud Abu Alkas

Jordan and the United Arab Emirates parachuted 25 tons of aid into the Gaza Strip on Sunday in their first airdrop in months, a Jordanian official source said.

The official said the air drops were not a substitute for delivery by land.

The post Jordan and UAE Drop Aid Into Gaza in First Airdrop in Months, Jordanian Source Says first appeared on Algemeiner.com.

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Trump Says Israel Will Have to Decide on Next Steps in Gaza, Pledges More Aid

U.S. President Donald Trump speaks during a cabinet meeting at the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., July 8, 2025. Photo: Kevin Lamarque via Reuters Connect.

US President Donald Trump said on Sunday Israel would have to make a decision on next steps in Gaza, adding that he did not know what would happen after the collapse of ceasefire and hostage-release negotiations with the Hamas terrorist group.

Trump underscored the importance of securing the release of hostages held by Hamas in Gaza, saying they had suddenly “hardened” up on the issue, and said the US would provide more aid to the war-torn Palestinian enclave.

“They don’t want to give them back, and so Israel is going to have to make a decision,” Trump told reporters at the start of a meeting with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen at his golf property in Turnberry, Scotland.

“I know what I’d do, but I don’t think it’s appropriate that I say it. But Israel is going to have to make a decision,” he said, while also claiming, without evidence, that Hamas members were stealing food coming into Gaza and selling it.

Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu both appeared on Friday to abandon Gaza ceasefire negotiations with Hamas, saying it had become clear that the Palestinian group did not want a deal.

Netanyahu said Israel was now mulling “alternative” options to achieve its goals of bringing its hostages home from Gaza and ending Hamas rule in the enclave.

Trump said he believed Hamas leaders would now be “hunted down,” telling reporters: “Hamas really didn’t want to make a deal. I think they want to die. And it’s very bad. And it got to be to a point where you’re going to have to finish the job.”

US TO PROVIDE MORE AID, TRUMP SAYS

Trump on Sunday said the US would provide more humanitarian aid to Gaza, where concerns are mounting about the worsening hunger, but wanted other countries to participate as well. He said he would discuss the issue with von der Leyen.

“We’re giving a lot of money, a lot of food, a lot of everything,” he said. “If we weren’t there, I think people would have starved, frankly. They would have starved, and it’s not like they’re eating well.”

He said he had spoken with Netanyahu and discussed a number of issues, including Iran. He said and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer would also discuss Israel when they meet at Trump’s golf property in Turnberry on Monday.

Trump also noted said the United States was not acknowledged for earlier food aid for Gaza.

“No other country gave anything,” he said, calling out European countries in particular. “It makes you feel a little bad when you do that and, you know, you have other countries not giving anything… Nobody gave but us. And nobody said, Gee, thank you very much. And it would be nice to have at least a thank you.”

The post Trump Says Israel Will Have to Decide on Next Steps in Gaza, Pledges More Aid first appeared on Algemeiner.com.

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