A series of explosions in Jenin yesterday conjured up the kinds of fighting that became hallmarks of the war against Hezbollah and Hamas.
The blasts were part of the IDF’s latest operation to uproot terrorist infrastructure in Jenin and other areas of the West Bank. However, the large explosions that sent smoke rising into the sky from several locations represent a new way of war in the territory.
The images and their meanings were not lost on commentators. People seeing the videos of the explosions were reminded of Gaza. This sense that we are now seeing the war in Gaza expand to the West Bank, with similar tactics, is acknowledged on the Right and Left, among pro-Israel commentators and pro-Palestinian commentators. The explosions, designed to destroy terrorist infrastructure, have thus had the effect of spreading shock and awe far beyond Jenin.
When we speak of “shock and awe,” it is worth recalling this terminology came from the opening US salvo of the 2003 war on Saddam Hussein in Iraq. Shock and awe are supposed to show an enemy what one is capable of. This is a big difference from how Israel had waged war for many years before October 7, 2023.
Before that fateful day, the IDF sought to conduct precision strikes that often were so precise people might not have even known they happened with a lot of investment in special forces in the era between 2014 and 2023. However, the war against Hamas and Hezbollah has shifted the dynamic back to using more destructive power in West Bank operations.
Sending a message
But in the West Bank, the people cannot turn away from these images. Anyone in Jenin would have seen and felt what happened, which was clearly designed to send a message.
The IDF has expertise in demolitions, having conducted many home demolitions over the years. The way they are usually carried out is that a home is mapped, civilians are removed, and the home is demolished in the middle of the night – the goal is to have as little friction with civilians as possible.
In many cases, the homes are part of larger buildings, and the demolition team is careful to only affect the one apartment or home the terrorist is linked to.
Yesterday, the explosions in Jenin were in broad daylight when it was obvious they would be caught on video. This is shock and awe.
The IDF said it destroyed several buildings, while Palestinian media claimed 20 buildings were destroyed. Al Quds media said the buildings affected included those in the historic refugee camp area of Jenin and that those buildings are “built vertically,” meaning many families will be affected. The report said 15,000 people had been displaced due to the fighting in recent days.
During this operation, the IDF eliminated several dozen terrorists in Jenin and expanded to include areas in Tammun over the last day. The IDF has also detained at least 100 wanted suspects. Since October 7, a total of 850 Palestinians have been killed in the West Bank, and the estimate is that 90% of them were terrorists, while 6,000 have been arrested and 120 airstrikes were carried out.
The IDF said it “located and confiscated dozens of weapons, destroyed hundreds of explosive devices, and neutralized dozens of additional explosives that had been planted along routes to target our forces.”
However, uprooting all these threats didn’t necessarily require blowing up several buildings. The shock and awe of the explosions are symbolic of how the new operation is growing. The goal is to send a message that this is not like all the other smaller raids in the West Bank. It also exceeds Home and Garden, a Jenin raid in the summer of 2023.The fact is that the IDF’s raids over the last two years have not stopped the terror threat. If anything, things have become cyclical, and the threat is the same or growing.
This is not “mowing the grass” or “shrinking the conflict.” Instead, it is clear that something worse may be coming in the West Bank. The problem is that the IDF already launched an operation designed to preempt terror in the West Bank, in operation Break the Wave. Illegal rifles have continued to flow to terrorists, though, and the threats are shifting and growing.
Can shock and awe work? Will it make people in Jenin, Tulkarm, Nablus, and Tammun think twice about joining groups such as Palestinian Islamic Jihad or Hamas? What if the shock and awe have the opposite effect of radicalizing people?People who are asleep in their homes when the IDF conducts raids can pretend to ignore the raids because their everyday lives, and those of their families, are not affected. People who watch massive explosions in their city, while their kids attend school, may not be deterred but may become more angered and fearful.
The Italian diplomat and author Niccolo Machiavelli surmised that while it can be good to be feared, it is not helpful to be hated. If shock and awe means there is fear, it may have its desired effect. If it leads to more hatred, it could backfire.
This article was originally published by a www.jpost.com . Read the Original article here. .