Former Shin Bet head says Gaza war ‘no longer serves Israel’s national objectives’

The former head of Israel’s Shin Bet security service and commander-in-chief of the Israeli navy has called for an immediate end to the Gaza conflict, saying that Israel has “achieved all the military goals” and that continuing the war risks further endangering hostages while undermining the country’s strategic interests.

Speaking to Melinda Nucifora on Al Arabiya English’s Counterpoints, Ami Ayalon, who has spent nearly four decades in public service for Israel, spoke of the reasons behind an open letter he and other former security officials addressed to US President Donald Trump in March, declaring that the Gaza war “no longer serves Israel’s national objectives.”

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“The immediate reason was the hostages,” he said. “We still have hostages somewhere in the tunnels. And they are dying every day. For us Israelis, we believe that the old concept, we rely on each other. So we cannot define the essence of victory unless we should bring them back.”

‘A war without political goals’

While Ayalon said that the conflict began as a “just war” following Hamas’ October 7, 2023 attack – “we acted against horror and violence used by Hamas” – he criticized the Israeli leadership for failing to define clear political objectives from the outset.

“After between six to eight months, the way we understand the battlefield, we achieved all the military goals,” Ayalon said. “The problem with this war is that from the very beginning, our leaders, our political leaders, did not define any political goal to this war.”

“After almost 40 years of experience, and I’m studying the concept of war until today, I know exactly what happens to a war that we launch without any political goal. The war becomes the end and not the mean in order to achieve a better reality.”

This absence of defined objectives has led to a cycle of destruction without purpose, according to the former military chief.

“We are conquering several places for the fourth time. We are destroying, we are killing innocent people,” he said, adding that the government’s failure to define “the day after” means “we have to stop this war.”

When asked whether Hamas has been defeated militarily in Gaza, Ayalon said: “From the military point of view, yes, we can measure it. And they do not act as an organization.”

However, he described how it is impossible to eliminate every individual associated with Hamas, saying:

“There is no way to eliminate all Hamas activists. We have to understand what we are facing is a very, very violent ideology.”

The former security chief pointed to a governance vacuum as a critical failing of Israel’s strategy. “[Hamas] control the area because we did not create somebody or we did not do anything in order to create somebody to replace them. And everything starts because there is no definition to the day after.”

Israel ‘divided’

Ayalon said the Israeli public is increasingly at odds with the government’s approach to the war. According to him, “the Israeli society is divided” on what the “day after” should look like.

“Some people in this government will tell you unless we shall occupy Gaza and we shall build settlements in Gaza, we do not have the right to end this war,” he explained. “The majority of the Israelis do not agree. The majority of the Israelis…are telling to our government every day we have to bring back all our hostages and to end this war.”

When asked if current Israeli soldiers share his concerns about fighting a war that may no longer need to be fought, Ayalon said: “For a soldier, it is almost impossible to think that his leaders do not think on why they are sending him to war. He cannot believe that his leaders are doing it for political reasons. I think that you can understand it only when you see it from outside.”

Ayalon predicted that many soldiers will experience disillusionment once the conflict ends. “I think most Israelis understand that when this war will end, only then we shall be able to see clearly what happened to us since the beginning of this war, what happened to us as human beings, and what happened to us as the Israeli society, and are we closer to a better reality or are we not?”

US-Israel relations

Ayalon also shared his perspective on Israel’s relationship with the United States under President Donald Trump. When asked about Trump’s decision not to visit Israel during his Middle East tour this week – which saw the US president visit Saudi Arabia, and with stops in Qatar and the UAE - Ayalon said: “The way I understand him, he is doing what he thinks is good for the American interest.”

“As an American president, he believes that he should achieve stability in this region. I think that the only way to do it is to fly to Saudi Arabia and to try to persuade Saudis to go forward and to achieve a nuclear deal with Iran instead of going into a new war.”

Ayalon also spoke about Israel’s growing isolation, both regionally and globally.

“Our leaders do not understand it and are not playing part. They are out of the game,” he said. “I think that the Israeli government made almost every mistake, and we are isolated not only in the world, but in the Middle East as well.”

He added: “It’s not too late to change this course of action,” advocating for a “regional coalition that would bring Saudis, Egyptians, all the stable states of this region” to help create economic opportunities and secure borders.”

Such an approach, Ayalon believes, could gain traction with the Israeli public. “I think that the Israeli society will have to listen.”

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