Update: Discussion can be continued here:

http://larvatusprodeo.net/2009/01/19/eyeless-in-gaza-vii/

Their official rhetoric is that since 2006 Hezbollah hasn’t fired any rockets into Israel. Therefore the fearful pounding the IDF meted out to Lebanese population centres was a successful deterrent.

Fast forward to 2009. Israel meted out a fearful pounding on Gaza. Now the IDF prepares to withdraw. Does Israel believe that, like Hezbollah, Hamas will remain quiet?

If that is the thinking, then Israel may have made the mistake of assuming that Hezbollah and Hamas have similar ambitions. This is not the case. Hezbollah was happy enough to return to the centre of political life in Lebanon. They are not fixated on Israel

Hamas, on the other hand, owes its existence to the struggle against Israel. They must continue to resist Israel, or cease to exist.

Israel may eventually be forced to attempt to garrison Gaza, with all its attendant dangers.

It certainly changed their path. After their ethnic cleansing of southern Lebanon (no Christians there now, it was never reported in the MSM and the ‘peace’ movement never protested it)

An illogical asertion: if the MSM never reported it how could the ‘peace movement’ knew about it to protest? Secondly, independent proof of this alleged ethic cleansing?

they changed from building a hizb’allah ‘enclave’ in Lebanon to muscling in on its government. That’s forcing the Syrians to work with the Israelis to counter them.

Yeah, right. The Syrians worked so hard for Israel that Hezbollah has never before been better re-supplied through the Syrian land borders, and is consequently armed as never before.

Rob re:

I’d add that the IDF has won this encounter. It’s lost only around 10 dead, some from friendly fire, while hundreds of Hamas operatives have been killed. In the calculus of the Middle East, still largely a medieval warrior culture, that counts for a lot.

If your criteria is body count, then the USA must have won the Vietnam war. You really think those “operatives” won’t be replaced, and soon? Roughly 3:1 military personnel killed in favour of Israel in the 2006 war and Hezbollah lost? It’s the political victory, not the body count that matters. Like the Brit Royal Air Force [outnumbered roughly 3:1] in WW2, simply surviving was the 1941 victory for the clearly weaker force.

The IDF has fought and won in one of the most dangerous urban warfare environments in the world, an environment of a kind traditionally regarded as a death trap to an invading force. I imagine military strategists the world over will be studying their tactics very closely.

Hyperbolic drivel. Ten Israelis killed and three of those by friendly fire. Compare with General Paulus’ army at Stalingrad–900,000 men; 60,000 or so into captivity at the end of it.

The point is that they hid under a hospital, myriad, knowing the IDF couldn’t strike them. That’s cowardice, as well as a war crime.

Paraphrasing Captain Jack Sparrow: Terrorists! Duh!

Of course they will, I would have thought killing women and children was quite easy really, I mean, what military tactics are required here? I guess to open the bomb bay doors, or to operate the missile delivery system of a U.S. supplied F16 fighter or bomber takes some tactical training.Not to mention the driving of tanks, and the firing of modern artillery pieces.

So Hamas with their AK 47′s and other small arms didn’t put up a very good fight against Abraham’s tanks, modern artillery, and assorted aircraft and helicopters?

In a word “Bollicks”

“Which leaves the obvious conclusion that the only less the IDF has to offer is that if you’re willing to kill children, women and civilian men at an extraordinarily high rate and in breach of international law, you too can ‘win’.”

So… No comment on Hamas’ culpability in regard to putting women and children in the line of fire as a military tactic? Thought not.

Which leaves the obvious conclusion that the only less the IDF has to offer is that if you’re willing to kill children, women and civilian men at an extraordinarily high rate and in breach of international law, you too can ‘win’.

As to your last statement Rob, what did you expect, that Hamas leaders should all helpfully line up for the IDF? It’s a stupid point when we know full well that every country has bunkers in which to hide its leadership in case of military strike or invasion, including Israel.