Latest news with #AmiAyalon
Al Arabiya
16-05-2025
- Politics
- Al Arabiya
Former Shin Bet head says Gaza war ‘no longer serves Israel's national objectives'
The former head of Israel's Shin Bet security service and commander-in-chief of the Israeli navy has called for an immediate end to the Gaza conflict, saying that Israel has 'achieved all the military goals' and that continuing the war risks further endangering hostages while undermining the country's strategic interests. Speaking to Melinda Nucifora on Al Arabiya English's Counterpoints, Ami Ayalon, who has spent nearly four decades in public service for Israel, spoke of the reasons behind an open letter he and other former security officials addressed to US President Donald Trump in March, declaring that the Gaza war 'no longer serves Israel's national objectives.' 'The immediate reason was the hostages,' he said. 'We still have hostages somewhere in the tunnels. And they are dying every day. For us Israelis, we believe that the old concept, we rely on each other. So we cannot define the essence of victory unless we should bring them back.' 'A war without political goals' While Ayalon said that the conflict began as a 'just war' following Hamas ' October 7, 2023 attack – 'we acted against horror and violence used by Hamas' – he criticized the Israeli leadership for failing to define clear political objectives from the outset. 'After between six to eight months, the way we understand the battlefield, we achieved all the military goals,' Ayalon said. 'The problem with this war is that from the very beginning, our leaders, our political leaders, did not define any political goal to this war.' 'After almost 40 years of experience, and I'm studying the concept of war until today, I know exactly what happens to a war that we launch without any political goal. The war becomes the end and not the mean in order to achieve a better reality.' This absence of defined objectives has led to a cycle of destruction without purpose, according to the former military chief. 'We are conquering several places for the fourth time. We are destroying, we are killing innocent people,' he said, adding that the government's failure to define 'the day after' means 'we have to stop this war.' When asked whether Hamas has been defeated militarily in Gaza, Ayalon said: 'From the military point of view, yes, we can measure it. And they do not act as an organization.' However, he described how it is impossible to eliminate every individual associated with Hamas, saying: 'There is no way to eliminate all Hamas activists. We have to understand what we are facing is a very, very violent ideology.' The former security chief pointed to a governance vacuum as a critical failing of Israel's strategy. '[Hamas] control the area because we did not create somebody or we did not do anything in order to create somebody to replace them. And everything starts because there is no definition to the day after.' Israel 'divided' Ayalon said the Israeli public is increasingly at odds with the government's approach to the war. According to him, 'the Israeli society is divided' on what the 'day after' should look like. 'Some people in this government will tell you unless we shall occupy Gaza and we shall build settlements in Gaza, we do not have the right to end this war,' he explained. 'The majority of the Israelis do not agree. The majority of the Israelis…are telling to our government every day we have to bring back all our hostages and to end this war.' When asked if current Israeli soldiers share his concerns about fighting a war that may no longer need to be fought, Ayalon said: 'For a soldier, it is almost impossible to think that his leaders do not think on why they are sending him to war. He cannot believe that his leaders are doing it for political reasons. I think that you can understand it only when you see it from outside.' Ayalon predicted that many soldiers will experience disillusionment once the conflict ends. 'I think most Israelis understand that when this war will end, only then we shall be able to see clearly what happened to us since the beginning of this war, what happened to us as human beings, and what happened to us as the Israeli society, and are we closer to a better reality or are we not?' US-Israel relations Ayalon also shared his perspective on Israel's relationship with the United States under President Donald Trump. When asked about Trump's decision not to visit Israel during his Middle East tour this week – which saw the US president visit Saudi Arabia, and with stops in Qatar and the UAE - Ayalon said: 'The way I understand him, he is doing what he thinks is good for the American interest.' 'As an American president, he believes that he should achieve stability in this region. I think that the only way to do it is to fly to Saudi Arabia and to try to persuade Saudis to go forward and to achieve a nuclear deal with Iran instead of going into a new war.' Ayalon also spoke about Israel's growing isolation, both regionally and globally. 'Our leaders do not understand it and are not playing part. They are out of the game,' he said. 'I think that the Israeli government made almost every mistake, and we are isolated not only in the world, but in the Middle East as well.' He added: 'It's not too late to change this course of action,' advocating for a 'regional coalition that would bring Saudis, Egyptians, all the stable states of this region' to help create economic opportunities and secure borders.' Such an approach, Ayalon believes, could gain traction with the Israeli public. 'I think that the Israeli society will have to listen.'
Middle East Eye
29-04-2025
- Politics
- Middle East Eye
Former Shin Bet chief backs criticism of Gaza war by Board of Deputies members
A former head of Israel's Shin Bet security agency has intervened in support of members of the Board of Deputies of British Jews facing disciplinary action for speaking out against the Israeli government and its war on Gaza. Writing in The Guardian newspaper on Tuesday, Ami Ayalon said the 36 board members were 'true friends of Israel' who had 'expressed the exact concerns and sentiments' as those voiced during weekly anti-government protests attended by thousands in Israel. Ayalon, a former Israeli navy admiral and a longstanding critic of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, said: 'It is not easy to speak out and I commend them for their bravery. I know that they will now face a backlash. However, so many of us leading the struggle in Israel wish that more of our friends in the diaspora would follow their lead.' He said that to support Israel now meant 'to speak out against this extremist government, not to sit on the sidelines in silence or, worse still, conduct a business-as-usual relationship, meeting government officials and presenting an image of a global Jewry united behind the Israeli government'. His comments come after board president Phil Rosenberg met Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar in London last week and wrote on social media: 'Jewish leadership is standing up for peace & security in Israel & the Middle East… Unity is strength. Division serves only our enemies.' New MEE newsletter: Jerusalem Dispatch Sign up to get the latest insights and analysis on Israel-Palestine, alongside Turkey Unpacked and other MEE newsletters Board leaders last week launched disciplinary action against 36 deputies who signed a letter published in the Financial Times in which they accused the Israeli government of 'extremism' and called for an end to the war in Gaza, as well as condemning violence against Palestinians in the West Bank. Rosenberg noted that the signatories made up just 10 percent of board members, while board chief executive Michael Wegier accused them of 'misrepresenting our community'. But the board's response prompted further statements of support for the signatories, and condemnation of the Israeli government. UK: Rabbis condemn Israel in latest show of Jewish opposition to Gaza war Read More » On Friday, 30 Jewish religious leaders in the UK, including prominent figures within Reform Judaism and Liberal Judaism, said in a letter also published in the Financial Times that they were 'horrified' by the war on Gaza and called on Israel to uphold international law and allow aid into the besieged enclave. In a separate letter published by Jewish News, 40 prominent Israelis including former soldiers, ambassadors and members of the Knesset, said the signatories of the letter to the Financial Times had taken a 'righteous stance'. Ayalon headed Shin Bet between 1996 and 2000. He is also a former commander-in-chief of the Israeli navy and a former Knesset member for the Labor Party. He is among other former military and security chiefs who earlier this month accused Netanyahu and his far-right coalition of waging a 'political' war in Gaza and demanded an end to the conflict in a statement published in Israeli newspapers. Writing in the Guardian, Ayalon said Israel was facing an "existential" crisis. "Silence is a show of support for the Israeli government," he said. "I call on our allies - governments and diaspora Jewish communities - to hear the plea of the Israeli public and in particular the hostage families, who are demanding an end to the war and a new dawn for Israel."
