On Zionism and its survival – Benny Morris in NYT:

‘Unfortunately, Benjamin Netanyahu is right — “unfortunately,” I say, because he is the most incompetent, corrupt and divisive Israeli prime minister ever, as many in Israel believe. But he is right that it’s crucial for Israel to conquer Rafah and destroy the Hamas battalions ensconced in that city at the southern end of the Gaza Strip, protected by a human shield of some 1.4 million residents and refugees from the north.
If this does not happen, Hamas will survive to fight and murder and rape another day — and its leader, Yahya Sinwar, will emerge from his hiding place declaring victory. And he will be right. For Palestinian-Israeli peace to have any chance, for regional stability and for the future welfare of Israel and Israelis, especially those living in the south of the country, Hamas must be obliterated.’

(…)

‘The recent mass demonstrations on Israel’s streets calling alternatively for such a deal or for Mr. Netanyahu’s ouster might turn violent and anarchic. And the prospective assault on Rafah could require calling up a large number of Israeli reservists who were only recently released from service in Gaza, along the border with Lebanon or in the West Bank. Indeed, the confluence of these two issues — the hostages and additional, burdensome reserve service — might halt the offensive in mid-stride and precipitate a crisis in the government coalition.’

(…)

‘If Hamas emerges from this war in control of Rafah, where thousands of its fighters are believed to remain, and the southern quarter of Gaza, it could gradually rearm through the tunnels connecting the Strip and Sinai, and soon project its power northward to encompass most or all of the Strip, many analysts believe.
Above all, an Israeli failure to take Rafah and smash Hamas’s last organized military formations and its governing structures will paint Israel, in its enemies’ eyes, as a weak, defeated polity, easy prey for the next potential assailant. Paradoxically, the spectacle of Israeli weakness — as much as a Rafah offensive — could tempt Hezbollah to gamble on a full-scale war.’

(…)

‘To now allow the badly mauled Hamas to emerge victorious will underline Zionism’s crucial failure. And critics in the Arab and Muslim world of making peace with Israel — Egypt, Jordan, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Morocco have done so — may well be emboldened to reject such ties.
A hundred or so years of conflict with Arab nations and of terrorism, culminating in the Hamas brutality of Oct. 7, have demonstrated that Israel, certainly for the moment, can be considered the least safe place on earth for Jews. Invading Rafah is vital to eliminating Hamas and restoring that safety. You don’t have to like Benjamin Netanyahu to see that.’

Read the article here.

I respect Benny Morris, but invading Rafah in order to save Zionism seems to be farfetched to me. Morris might be right, but apparently first taking in another round of tit for that that’s so typical for the Middle East.

Another question remains unanswered, what if Zionism cannot survive, not for the time being at least, would that be the end of the Jews?