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State of Shock: How is Israel Dealing With Hamas Offensive?
State of Shock: How is Israel Dealing With Hamas Offensive?
Sputnik International
Former Israeli Air Force member and dual US-Israeli national Doron Willentzik said that while his compatriots were stunned by the success of the Palestinian offensive, they were united in the face of the threat from Gaza.
2023-10-13T02:48+0000
2023-10-13T02:48+0000
2023-10-13T02:45+0000
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Israelis have remained united in the face of threats from the Gaza Strip although officials were initially stunned by the weekend launch of the Palestinian offensive, a former Israeli airman has said.Doron Willentzik, who formerly served as a member of the Israeli Air Force, told Sputnik the crisis had united Israelis across the political divide.There have been reports that up to 300,000 reservists with the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) have been called up in response to the crisis — close to a tenth of the country's workforce."Different units have got different codes and different symbols," Willentzik explained of calls made to service members. "They basically designate their need to be drafted at a certain time and show up at a particular place. And so each member of the Reserve is familiar with his or her specific designation and identifier."The former airman subsequently addressed allegations that Iran was responsible for the breakout of hostilities from the Gaza Strip."I guess that's the $64 million question," he said. "I'm reading a lot of interpretations for both sides, and I would be personally be premature in directly linking Iran to this."In response to the unprecedented strikes, the Israeli government has vowed to carry out an "immense" revenge against Hamas' offensive; in fact, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant issued a stern message in which he said military forces would "wipe out this thing called Hamas."The response to the conflict from Israel's neighbors has been mixed. Egypt has demanded Tel Aviv allow humanitarian aid convoys into Gaza, but refuses to allow the population of over 2 million to be displaced onto its own territory. Syria, Iran and Lebanon's Hezbollah have condemned Israel's response but have not been drawn into the conflict — despite repeated Israeli provocations."I think that there's, behind the scenes, also conversations with the Egyptians about next steps," he added.For more insightful commentary on the top news, check out our Sputnik News show Political Misfits.
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State of Shock: How is Israel Dealing With Hamas Offensive?
The Palestine-Israel conflict reached a fever point on October 7 with the Hamas' launch of Operation Al-Aqsa Flood. In the days since, Israel responded by declaring a state of war and implementing a full blockade on supplies of food, gas and electricity - all while firing retaliatory strikes. Both sides have reported mass casualties.
Israelis have remained united in the face of threats from the Gaza Strip although officials were initially stunned by the weekend launch of the Palestinian offensive, a former Israeli airman has said.
Doron Willentzik, who formerly served as a member of the Israeli Air Force,
told Sputnik the crisis had united Israelis across the political divide.
"I have heard folks on both the left and the right, as well as military folks, reserves and others essentially saying: 'I really don't care if you are a left-winger or a right-winger,'" Willentzik said. "We are all Israelis and we are all united in this one cause, which is essentially a survival of the horror that we have just seen."
There have been reports that up to 300,000 reservists with the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) have been called up in response to the crisis — close to a tenth of the country's workforce.
"Different units have got different codes and different symbols," Willentzik explained of calls made to service members. "They basically designate their need to be drafted at a certain time and show up at a particular place. And so each member of the Reserve is familiar with his or her specific designation and identifier."
11 October 2023, 10:59 GMT
The former airman subsequently addressed allegations that Iran was responsible for the breakout of hostilities from the Gaza Strip.
"I guess that's the $64 million question," he said. "I'm reading a lot of interpretations for both sides, and I would be personally be premature in directly linking Iran to this."
In response to the unprecedented strikes, the
Israeli government has vowed to carry out an "immense" revenge against Hamas' offensive; in fact, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant issued a stern message in which he said military forces would "wipe out this thing called Hamas."
"I think that it is an absolute necessity to do so, because I think that all the political peace attempts over the years have just blown up in Israel's face as a result of this recent horror and operation, which leaves Israel with very few choices," Willentzik said, but warned "there is no ability to negotiate with Hamas and it will be extremely difficult and bloody."
12 October 2023, 17:42 GMT
The response to the conflict from Israel's neighbors has been mixed. Egypt has demanded Tel Aviv allow humanitarian aid convoys into Gaza, but refuses to allow the population of over 2 million to be displaced onto its own territory. Syria, Iran and Lebanon's Hezbollah have condemned Israel's response but have not been drawn into the conflict — despite repeated Israeli provocations.
"There has been silence from [Palestinian Authority President] Mahmoud Abbas and others," Willentzik noted. "I think they're trying to perhaps gauge what the next few weeks are going to mean for them... they may be assessing right now what the next steps are."
"I think that there's, behind the scenes, also conversations with the Egyptians about next steps," he added.
For more insightful commentary on the top news, check out our Sputnik News show Political Misfits. 
