The former Israeli intelligence chief says Tel Aviv’s pursuit of “absolute victory” is pushing the state toward long-term strategic ruin.
Amos Yadlin, the former head of Israel’s Military Intelligence Directorate (Aman), has warned that Israel is nearing a “profound political and strategic catastrophe” nearly two years after the start of its war on Gaza.
In remarks made for Israel’s Channel 12, Yadlin said that the war has failed to achieve its stated goals, while Hamas has managed to regroup, and Israel now finds itself “exhausted and isolated.”
“Nearly two years after the October 7 disaster,” Yadlin said, according to Al-Jazeera, adding that “Israel is approaching another catastrophe—this time not only military, but also deeply political and strategic.”
Yadlin sharply criticized the Israeli leadership’s promise of “absolute victory,” noting that despite military actions across Lebanon, Syria, Iran, and Gaza, Hamas continues to control the Strip, and the Israeli captives remain in Gaza.
“Israel does not appear victorious,” he added. “It looks exhausted, isolated, and stuck in a battlefield with no clear political objective.”
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He argued that the idea of total victory was never realistic, noting that no modern war since 1945 has yielded such outcomes. Without a political strategy, he warned, Israel is becoming a “pariah state,” reversing its early image as a victim in the war.
Yadlin pointed to growing international frustration, including moves by Western countries to unilaterally recognize a Palestinian state. He stressed that governments should aim for short, decisive wars with clear military gains that can be translated into political achievements.
Loss of Allies
Yadlin held Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu—currently wanted by the International Criminal Court for war crimes—responsible for failing to capitalize on earlier international backing. He said Netanyahu’s refusal to engage in negotiations about ending the war or planning for Gaza’s future has allowed Hamas to reestablish its strength.
According to Yadlin, US President Donald Trump, one of Israel’s earliest and most vocal supporters, is “starting to lose patience.” He noted that US political dynamics are shifting, with growing anti-Israel sentiment and support for Israel reaching record lows.
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To avoid further deterioration, Yadlin called for a strategy of “smart victory”—ending the war deliberately with international support, concluding a comprehensive prisoner exchange deal, tying Gaza’s reconstruction to the full disarmament of Hamas, and securing American guarantees for future Israeli military operations.
He concluded with a stark warning: continuing to cling to the slogan of “absolute victory” will result in a “political October 7,” urging the Israeli government to adopt a new approach to regain initiative and rehabilitate its standing in the international arena.
(PC, AJA)
yadlin… is clearly a FOOL!! For isreal, there is NO way back! … the World’s peoples will Never accept a re-armed israel, ” free ” to again attack Arab Nations and Iran!!… zionism, as a project and ideology, is Dead Forever… if israel is to survive at all, it must be as a disarmed state in 1947 borders similar to a Vatican City for jews and of NO threat to anyone. If Hamas were to be dissolved for fighting to FREE the most oppressed people on Earth, then likud and settler parties MUST be dissolved for carrying out a brutal savage un-human GENOCIDE!!