The Best Way to Win the War in Gaza Is to End It

For 22 months, since the Oct. 7 Hamas attacks, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has insisted it’s too soon to discuss Gaza’s future. One can debate the merits of his position (and his motivations). For the sake of Israel’s long-term security, however, the time has come to change course.

Thanks in no small part to the prime minister’s decisions — along with the skill of Israeli spies and fighter pilots, and crucial help from the US — Israel enjoys a stronger position in its neighborhood than it has in decades, or perhaps ever. Its enemies have been routed: Hamas is a shell of its former self; Hezbollah has been decapitated and stripped of much of its missile arsenal. Most important, Iran has been humbled, suffering devastating damage to its nuclear facilities, military leadership, ballistic-missile forces and air defenses after 12 days of Israeli and US airstrikes. Neighbors from Saudi Arabia to Lebanon and Syria have indicated varying degrees of interest in healthier relations with the Jewish state.