Operation Protective Edge: Simple Yet Complicated

Our goal in Operation Protective Edge is simple: To restore quiet to the South of Israel. We cannot accept terrorist groups firing rockets at our citizens and innocent civilians. Action must be taken to stop this.  Throughout the last eight years since our disengagement from Gaza, the State of Israel has demonstrated restraint numerous times. In addition, we have sent clear messages to Hamas stating that we will not accept rocket fire into our country, but Hamas has chosen not to listen.

Hamas placed itself in a difficult situation. They need to know that no one is immune from harm when you place rocket launchers and stockpiles of weapons in the midst of innocent civilians, thereby using them as cover.

Discussions concerning military action is conducted in the IDF, the Cabinet, and the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committees, as it should be. The State of Israel will not be conducted according to the whims of factions within the population but by responsible leadership which makes decisions and calculated judgment with the security of Israel’s citizens at the forefront of their considerations.

Therefore, it must be underscored that complication arises in that there is no simple solution to this situation which is over a decade in the making. Israel must act powerfully and intelligently, to protect the residents of the South and its citizens in general. There is no place for inflammatory rhetoric and these remarks that we have heard in recent days have no substance.

In light of recent events, we need to be united to give the government and the IDF the confidence to operate under the knowledge that they have our full support as members of the Knesset; and as part of Yesh Atid. This is not the time to engage in politics for politics sake.

We need to be prepared that this operation will take time. The goal, at the end of the day, is to restore peace and security to the residents, however complicated it may be and however long it takes.