JERUSALEM – In the aftermath of the October 7th, 2023 massacre—the deadliest antisemitic atrocity since the Holocaust—Israel finds itself locked in a war for survival against Iranian-backed terror networks, led foremost by Hamas. The coordinated assault by thousands of Hamas terrorists saw unspeakable barbarity unleashed upon Israeli civilians: whole families were executed in their homes, men and women slaughtered indiscriminately, entire communities burned, and more than 1,200 men, women, and children brutally murdered. Hundreds more, including the elderly and children, were dragged from their beds and taken hostage to the Gaza Strip, sparking a national trauma that will reverberate for generations.
Immediate military response
Within hours of the Hamas assault, Israel declared a state of war and mobilized the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) under the leadership of Chief of Staff Lieutenant General Eyal Zamir. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addressed the nation, declaring, “Israel is at war. We will defend our people and hold our enemies to account.”
The IDF launched Operation Iron Swords, a campaign designed to neutralize Hamas’ military infrastructure, eliminate its leadership, and restore the safety of Israeli communities along the Gaza border and beyond. In the ensuing weeks, the IDF targeted thousands of terror sites, with the stated goal of dismantling Hamas’ capacity to launch further attacks from the Gaza Strip. This military campaign has involved precision airstrikes, targeted ground operations, and the use of cutting-edge defense systems such as Iron Dome, capable of intercepting barrages of rockets directed at Israeli population centers.
Nature of the enemy: Iranian-backed terror axis
The attack on October 7th was not a local event but a manifestation of a broader proxy war waged by Iran against Israel. Hamas—declared a terrorist organization by the United States, the European Union, and dozens of other countries—is the Gaza arm of Iran’s so-called “Axis of Resistance.” Alongside Hamas, Iranian-backed terror groups such as Hezbollah in Lebanon, Islamic Jihad in Gaza, the Houthis in Yemen, and Shiite militias operating in Iraq and Syria have all sought Israel’s destruction through coordinated military, political, and information warfare campaigns.
Intelligence assessments released by Israeli officials as well as Western intelligence document how the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has funneled weapons, military technology, training, and financial resources to these groups. The October 7th massacre was, in effect, an act of war orchestrated by Iran’s regional terror complex, seeking to destabilize Israel and redraw the regional power balance through violence.
Regional implications and international response
The war’s reverberations have been felt far beyond Israel’s borders. Hezbollah, Iran’s most heavily armed proxy, quickly escalated attacks on northern Israel, launching anti-tank missiles, rockets, and drones at civilian towns and military positions along the Lebanon border. In response, the IDF scaled up defensive measures, including pre-emptive strikes on launch sites and Hezbollah infrastructure, seeking to prevent a second front from erupting in full scale.
Meanwhile, Iranian-backed militias in Syria and Iraq have attempted to open additional theaters of conflict, targeting Israel with drone and rocket attacks. The Houthis in Yemen—another cog in Iran’s machine—have threatened Israeli shipping in the Red Sea. Each of these escalations serves Tehran’s larger goal: to surround Israel with a ring of armed proxies, all advancing the strategy of attrition and terror.
The United States, under President Donald Trump, reaffirmed its support for Israel’s right to self-defense, deploying carrier strike groups to the Eastern Mediterranean and intensifying intelligence and military cooperation. European leaders also condemned the Hamas attack, though divisions within the European Union have prevented a unified approach on measures such as further sanctions against Iran or bans on funding for terror-linked organizations.
Hostage crisis and humanitarian dilemma
One of the most agonizing dimensions of the war remains the fate of Israeli hostages in Gaza. Hamas has used children, women, and the elderly as bargaining chips, in grave violation of every standard of international law. The Israeli government, in coordination with international organizations and intelligence partners, has prioritized the safe return of hostages, pursuing negotiations and, when necessary, special forces operations.
Israel has faced constant criticism—even from some Western capitals—regarding its military campaign. Yet Israeli officials have repeatedly emphasized the distinction between measures taken to protect Israeli civilians and the deliberate targeting of innocents by Hamas. The IDF has published evidence of Hamas embedding its fighters, weapons, and command centers in civilian infrastructure, including hospitals, schools, and mosques—a well-documented war crime. A core Israeli objective remains to minimize non-combatant casualties, illustrated by the IDF’s extensive use of evacuation warnings, humanitarian corridors, and targeted strikes.
Hamas’ weapons of war: Rockets, tunnels, and information
The October 7th atrocities also spotlighted Hamas’ evolution into a sophisticated terror army under Iranian tutelage. The group has invested hundreds of millions of dollars in developing rocket arsenals, anti-tank missiles, and expansive tunnel networks designed to penetrate Israeli territory and kidnap civilians. These tunnels, often dug under Gaza’s dense urban centers, not only bolster Hamas’ fighting capabilities but endanger the very Gaza residents the group claims to represent.
Israeli officials have cited intercepted communications and captured documents showing Hamas’ systematic use of civilian shields and its strategy of using casualties as propaganda tools. International organizations, including some typically critical of Israeli policy, have confirmed elements of this pattern, recognizing the nearly impossible operational environment Israel faces.
Geopolitical context: The stakes beyond Gaza
This phase of war is not an isolated flare-up, but a continuation of the decades-long campaign by radical Islamist groups and their state sponsors to eradicate the Jewish state. Iran’s supreme leaders have repeatedly declared their intent to arm and mobilize proxies until Israel is erased from the map. The October 7th massacre—timed to exploit geopolitical shocks and divisions—was a chilling reminder of the existential stakes involved.
Israel, for its part, has framed its campaign not only as a matter of self-defense but as a defense of the broader Western order against radical Islamist expansion. Senior Israeli officials draw a direct line between the ideologies and tactics seen in Gaza, Lebanon, and elsewhere, and those aimed at destabilizing Europe and the United States.
The Abraham Accords: A new vision under threat?
Before the war, years of quiet diplomatic progress—anchored around the Abraham Accords—had seen Israel build unprecedented relationships with moderate Arab states, including the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Morocco, and Sudan. The 2020 normalization agreements marked a sea change in regional politics and posed a direct challenge to Iran’s narrative that the Middle East must remain in a state of perpetual war with Israel.
In the wake of October 7th, regional dynamics have shifted yet again. While some Arab governments have maintained diplomatic channels with Israel, others have stepped back under intense domestic and Iranian pressure. Nevertheless, the operational cooperation between Israel and its new Arab partners in areas such as counterterrorism, cybersecurity, and economic development persists—and the Israeli government regards the deepening of these ties as essential to breaking Iran’s stranglehold over the region.
Moral clarity amid the fog of war
Amid ongoing fighting, a propaganda war rages across social and traditional media. Hamas and its backers have sought to blur distinctions between attacker and defender, to invert the facts of the October 7th massacre, and to recast Israeli self-defense as aggression. Yet the record remains clear: Israel’s war aims to restore security, liberate its civilians from terrorist captivity, and dismantle an Iranian-armed proxy army embedded among civilians, in flagrant violation of every moral and legal norm.
The international community faces a stark choice. Will it stand with a democracy defending its people against calculated, genocidal terror, or will it allow the logic of intimidation, hostage-taking, and mass murder to dictate the future of the Middle East?
Conclusion: The path forward
Even as the war continues, Israeli leaders are beginning to look beyond military operations toward the urgent questions of reconstruction, deterrence, and regional integration. The future of Gaza—long held hostage by Hamas’ rule—remains uncertain, but the principle guiding Israel’s strategy is now unambiguous: No sovereign nation can allow terror armies to strike its population with impunity, to kidnap its citizens, or to threaten its very survival. This fight, in the words of the Israeli prime minister, is about “the right of a people to live free of fear, to live in their homeland, and to defend their children.”
In the coming months, the world will be watching not just the battlefield but the prospects for a broader regional realignment. One thing is certain: The October 7th massacre has reshaped Israel’s national security doctrine and redefined the stakes facing both friend and foe in the region. The future will hinge on the willingness of democracies to stand united against the forces of terror so that this dark chapter becomes a turning point toward greater security and peace.
