Gaza Border Fence Riots Require New Israeli Thinking and Action

Gershon Hacohen, algemeiner.com

Image from article, with caption: Unrest on the Israel-Gaza Strip border on Friday, April 27, 2018.

Excerpt:

When it comes to defending the Gaza border against physical threats, the responsibility of the IDF’s chief of staff and the commander of Southern Command is clear-cut and well fulfilled. That, however, does not constitute a sufficient response to Hamas’ effort to turn the border fence events into a strategic achievement. ...

A strategic threat requires a strategic response, one that entails preparations for a multidimensional campaign that is waged at the national level, with the state of Israel’s full resources and capabilities. A strategic response of this kind must address four basic aspects of the situation ... [among them:]

While the responsibility of the chief of staff and the commander of Southern Command is clear-cut and ably fulfilled, the organizational approach must be adapted to the demands of the psychological arena, with all its legal, diplomatic, and public-diplomacy [JB emphasis] aspects. The IDF Spokesperson’s Unit, the Foreign Ministry, and the public-diplomacy apparatus in the Prime Minister’s Office can, of course, retain responsibility for the domain of perception. Yet, as the challenge intensifies, a special new organization is required for mobilizing Israel’s full range of capabilities for an effort at the national level. ...