I deeply doubt that the current Israeli ruling coalition, marked by extremism and hubris, understands the concept of peace in any meaningful sense. In fact, Israel’s regional policies have moved it light-years away from any genuine pursuit of peace.
It is widely accepted that peace requires strength to uphold it. However, problems arise when this principle is distorted into a doctrine suggesting peace can be imposed through sheer force.
This is a dangerous and perplexing notion, plausible only if we accept that Israel has adopted a radical new strategy in the region. While such a strategy may deliver short-term gains, it is doomed to fail in the medium and long term. It will never bring Israeli peace or stability.
What I find even more troubling is the prevailing mindset among Israel’s political leadership — be it the far-right, traditional right, or even centrist factions. I wonder how these leaders envision Israel’s future in the region it inhabits, and how they expect it to integrate with its neighbours.
I often ask myself whether Yitzhak Rabin — assassinated three decades ago by an Israeli extremist — was the last leader capable of rationally contemplating the country’s future. Today, Israel’s political landscape seems devoid of rational voices, bereft of leaders capable of stopping the runaway train of blind extremism, which sees brute force as the only solution. That train is headed for disaster.
If we concede that Israel has the right to live in peace and security — and therefore to possess the means to defend its national interests — this right collapses entirely if it is treated as Israel’s exclusive privilege. No state can claim a monopoly on power while denying others the right to safeguard their own security and pursue peace.
This is due both to Israel’s persistent refusal to accept the establishment of a Palestinian state and to the genocidal war it has waged in Gaza and the West Bank since October 2023.
Israel's ambition to normalize relations with Saudi Arabia, too, is likely to falter under the weight of its current policies, particularly given Riyadh’s principled and transparent position on the Palestinian issue.
It would be naïve to appeal directly to Israel’s extremist ruling coalition, urging it to show a modicum of objectivity or to reassess even some of its policies. This coalition listens to no one, not even to the voices and demands of its own people. Still, three key realities must be acknowledged:
First, Israel will never enjoy peace as long as it relies on the strategy of imposing peace by force. Israeli leaders must understand that such a policy will not lead to further Arab normalization—on the contrary, it may begin to unravel existing agreements.
Second, all of Israel’s military operations in Gaza and the West Bank will not succeed in erasing the Palestinian cause. Israel’s true interest lies in negotiating with the Palestinians to establish their independent state. The continuation of the occupation guarantees the continuation of resistance in all its forms, and another Al-Aqsa Flood operation cannot be ruled out, whether in similar or new forms, and in different arenas.
Third, regional states that perceive Israel as a threat to their national security believe they are entitled to acquire all necessary elements of power to counter any potential Israeli aggression.
While I fear the two-state solution is slipping further out of reach, I still hold out hope. I call specifically on the United States to bring the Israeli and Palestinian sides back to the negotiating table — under the banner of post-war negotiations if necessary — with the goal of reaching a lasting agreement that ensures security for all.
Washington must reject Israel's outdated refrain that there is “no Palestinian partner.” The moderate Palestinian Authority, not Hamas, remains the only legitimate interlocutor, as it has been since the Oslo Accords of 1993.
If the United States and Israel persist in pursuing a relocation scheme — an approach doomed to fail in both Gaza and the West Bank — then peace will remain elusive. A just resolution to the Palestinian cause is the only path to regional stability, and negotiations must begin without delay.
While Washington and Tel Aviv continue to issue warnings to Iran and its allies, they should not be surprised if new and unforeseen threats emerge in the near future.
The bottom line is this: the current situation is no longer just about Gaza or prisoner exchange deals. Events are spiraling at a pace that defies all calculations. If the United States does not intervene constructively — and soon — the region risks descending into a prolonged cycle of violence.
The conflict, which is still contained to some extent, may expand beyond control.
Washington and Tel Aviv should not be overly confident that their policies will succeed or that they can enforce them through military and economic might.
The Middle East can no longer endure military adventures or reckless economic gambles.
*The writer is the Deputy Director of the Egyptian Center for Strategic Studies (ECSS)
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