SDEROT: WORSE THAN THE FAILURE OF THE SECOND LEBANESE WAR. In one of his last articles before his death on June 19, Israeli journalist Ze'ev Schiff writes that Israel has been defeated in Sderot.

An Israeli defeat in Sderot
By Ze'ev Schiff

Israel is experiencing something in Sderot that it has not experienced since the War of Independence, if ever: The enemy has silenced an entire city and brought normal life there to a halt. The despair of Sderot's mayor is one sign of what is happening. The sight of the town's elderly residents returning from a "rest and relaxation" trip and refusing to alight from the bus and go home is additional proof that what is happening in Sderot is a national disgrace.

...And, in fact, the present government in particular, but its predecessor as well, has suffered a resounding defeat here. The government has not succeeded in turning bombarded Sderot into a national defense project. That reinforces the assessment that this government is incapable of leading the nation in a major military confrontation.

It is also a defeat for the defense establishment, including the Israel Defense Forces. For years, no solution, not even a partial one, has been found to the problem of the Qassam rockets. Until the Second Lebanon War, the home front was considered secondary. It will take years until Israel gets this problem straightened out. There have been decisions, but in a government ruled by petty bureaucrats, the Finance Ministry is refusing to release even sums that have already been approved.

...And the result is that there is mutual deterrence between Israel and the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip. Israel finds itself in a military draw with Hamas. That is a serious national failure, which in my opinion is worse than the failure of the Second Lebanon War.

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