Comment and Opinion
The JC: Israel will resist prolonged escalation, by Shany Mor
[ssba]
Israel made one tactical mistake in its limited war with Hizbollah in 2006 which it repeated in 2009 with Hamas. It let intense rocket fire on Israeli cities dictate a longer than necessary timetable for war.
In both cases this increased Israel’s diplomatic isolation while providing diminishing returns on military action. It also lessened the shock effect of dramatic opening moves in both conflicts.
And by placing major population centres under attack for an extended period while appearing unable to counteract it, Israel weakened its long-term deterrence.