Israeli views on the protests: Israel also seems skeptical of the protests.
Israel doesn’t see the protesters handing over hostages or disarming Hamas.

1. Some commentators online have spread conspiracies suggesting that the protests are actually run by Hamas.
2. They also point out that the demonstrators are not calling for peace for Israel.

When the bar is set so high for the protesters, it is unlikely they can ever please some voices in Israel.

Israeli leaders have generally preferred Hamas running Gaza over the last decade and a half, to having the Palestinian Authority run Gaza.

If the protesters were able to topple Hamas, they would likely want new leadership in the form of working with the legitimate Palestinian Authority government in Ramallah.

1. Israel is still waging a new campaign in Gaza that began earlier this month and has so far been slow and relatively limited.
2. It is similar to how Israel ran campaigns last year, going in slowly to nibble away at areas around the urban centers of Gaza.
3. Israel uses its technological advances to move slowly and make sure soldiers’ lives are not risked.


Following the October 7 attack, 300,000 reservists were called up, and it’s clear many Israelis don’t look fondly on another year of reserve duty after serving for most of 2024