OPINION

Israel’s Netanyahu and self-preservation

The Pentagon may have the misconception that the war will be limited to Europe and the Middle East.

Bernie V. Lopez

Netanyahu may go nuke if Israel is cornered. He will not hesitate, in the name of self-preservation. In fact, Netanyahu, deep inside his warrior soul, perhaps wants a nuclear war because he believes it is the only path, the way the war with Iran is headed.

Beleaguered Israel is in a war on four fronts, beating Hitler’s two — Iran, Hezbollah, Hamas and the Houthis. For now they can ignore the “puny” Houthis, who however were able to send rockets effectively to Tel Aviv, Jaffa and Eil Lat.

There are 10 Israelis for every 10,000 Arabs-Persians, that is why it is so tempting for Netanyahu to go nuke. A protracted war is not a good strategy. Netanyahu is the total catalyst to a nuclear scenario.

The more enemies, the braver Netanyahu gets, the more his adrenaline goes up. And this is partly fueled by his recent rising popularity. He is actually oozing with self-confidence, evident in his fiery speech at the UN, akin to Hitler’s harangues.

Netanyahu’s valor comes from the fact that the US is beside him. The US actually orchestrated the sophisticated defense systems against Hezbollah and Iran when the “dome” began to weaken against the storm of missiles.

Israel’s nuclear history

Everybody knows Israel has nuclear weapons. It is an open secret. They have less than a hundred nukes. The US, Russia, and China have about 5,000 each. But nukes are an absolute equalizer. It does not matter if you have ten or a thousand. One is enough and you have “equalized” your enemy who has a hundred. It takes one nuke to achieve equalizer status.

In the past, the nuclear deterrence logic worked for Israel, keeping the Arabs-Persians at bay. The Islamic group was hesitant to go all out because they feared Israel’s nuke capability. But not anymore, not with the kind of escalation evolving rapidly after the 180 missiles Iran launched on 1 October.

The air is now too thick with hatred on both sides that has attained brinkmanship. Netanyahu’s battle cry is total revenge, ten eyes for an eye. But now fear has been replaced by aggression among the Arabs-Persians. The success of the 1 October blitzkrieg has emboldened them. The escalation has moved up to Phase 2.

Israel took decades to achieve nuclear status and kept it secret for years before it was finally discovered. And they were able to trick their Islamic foes, who readily joined the Nuclear Proliferation Treaty (NPT). Iran was subject to intense IAEA scrutiny. Israel was laughing because it did not sign the NPT and had no such intense inspections. So, Iran, with its nascent nuke capability, was being inspected, while Israel, which had close to a hundred nukes, was immune from inspection. Irony of ironies.

The Escalation Ladder

Step 1 in the Escalation Ladder was the 7 October Hamas invasion of Israel. Step 2 was the Gaza Genocide, still ongoing, where close to 40,000 Palestinians have died, many women and children, due to indiscriminate IDF bombings. Step 3 was the initial Hezbollah rocket retaliations. Step 4 was the assassination of military and political leaders of Hamas, Iran, and Hezbollah. Netanyahu ignored US warnings about the assassinations.

Step 5 was the intense Israeli bombing of Beirut, targeting Hezbollah headquarters, followed by the ground troops invasion on the border with Lebanon, where six Israeli soldiers were killed. Step 6 was the 1 October missile barrage by Iran which successfully penetrated the US-made defense systems.

Step 7 saw the proxy war heightening as Russia stepped in with a meeting with Iran to establish a mutual defense pact, a reaction to the key role of the US in the missile and drones defense systems for Israel. China and North Korea also promised their commitment. Russia and China are closing ranks versus the US.

What’s next?

The war will spill over into the Atlantic with Russia and China sending warships and stealth nuclear subs to prowl around US shores. Cuba hosts Russian naval vessels. The Pentagon may have the misconception that the war will be limited to Europe and the Middle East.

Pope Francis has launched a series of global prayer campaigns. The rosary is the most powerful weapon against war. Marian prophecies say the war in the Middle East will spread and worsen.