Editorial: The devastating and unforeseen assault has profound implications for the future of Israelis, Palestinians and the region
across southern Israel on Saturday was not just shocking and horrifying but seismic. It was not merely the most deadly assault in decades, with militants firing thousands of rockets and then attacking from land, sea and air. It targeted civilians, with fighters taking as many as 100 Israelis hostage, including elderly women and young children. At the time of writing, at least 600 Israelis had been killed and more than 2,000 injured.
How Hamas was able to do this is not yet known. What is certain is that the attack has already brought further disaster on Gaza. As of Sunday afternoon, Israeli retaliation had killedof a “long and difficult war” and reducing the places where Hamas hides to rubble. He ordered Palestinians to “leave now”, knowing that there is nowhere to go in this tiny, densely packed territory.
The biggest failure, however, is not of intelligence and security, but of politics. Less than a year ago the UN Middle East envoy told the security council that mattersin Israel and the West Bank and Jerusalem since the second intifada ended in 2005. A third has been widely predicted. Israel Defence Forces raids have soared; this summer saw the, emboldened by impunity. The decade-and-a-half long blockade has destroyed Gaza’s economy and left half the population in poverty.
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