How Gaza war has exposed fault lines among Israeli elites

A seemingly strange choice was made by a correspondent for Israel’s Channel 12 this month, when he decided to publish a humiliating video of a relatively large number of Israeli soldiers coming under attack by a single Palestinian fighter. In the incident that was filmed last year, soldiers are seen stumbling down the stairs of a building in Khan Yunis, southern Gaza, amid chaotic scenes: some fall over each other, others hide behind a concrete wall and some even fire erratically, endangering their colleagues.

This raises the question: given the Israeli media’s frequent adherence to strict, often unreasonable, military censorship, what motivated the decision to release such a damaging portrayal of its own soldiers?

The answer lies in the open war between the Israeli political institution, represented by the leadership of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, on the one hand and the rest of the country on the other.

The “rest of the country” may seem to be an elusive concept, but it is not. Netanyahu is today at war with the military, the internal intelligence agency Shin Bet, the judiciary, much of the media and the majority of Israelis, who want him to agree a deal that ends the war and ensures the release of all Israeli captives.

This explains the unprecedented and open criticism by former top Israeli officials, who are accusing Netanyahu of being a danger not only to the Israeli military and society, but also to the future of the country itself.

Netanyahu is accused of being a danger not only to the Israeli military and society, but also to the future of the country

Dr. Ramzy Baroud

Ronen Bar, the chief of the Shin Bet, last week broke every protocol when he presented Israel’s High Court of Justice with two documents, one of which was revealed to the public. According to Israeli media, in the unclassified affidavit, Bar stated that he was fired “because of his refusal to meet those expectations of loyalty,” particularly “regarding investigations into the prime minister’s aides” and for “his refusal to help Netanyahu avoid testifying in his criminal trial.”

Bar’s comments represent not only a fundamental shift in how Israel’s power players treat extremely sensitive security matters, but they are also, essentially, a call for the overthrow of Netanyahu.

A former head of the Shin Bet, Nadav Argaman, has been equally vocal. He was the first to speak about Netanyahu’s transgressions, suggesting clear coordination between the various elements of Israel’s notorious and powerful intelligence agency. “If the prime minister acts unlawfully, I will say everything I know,” he said last month.

The coordination runs deeper, with former Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant — who, along with Netanyahu, is wanted by the International Criminal Court — going on his own rampage last week. Aside from a direct attack on Netanyahu, calling one of his Gaza policies a “moral disgrace,” Gallant seemed to disparage the Israeli military, revealing that it had last year faked pictures of an alleged Hamas tunnel in order to prevent a ceasefire agreement.

The Israeli government used this specific episode as its rationale for maintaining control over the Philadelphi Corridor in southern Gaza — a justification that emerged around the same time as the deeply embarrassing video of Israeli soldiers running in terror from a lone combatant was filmed. The layers of humiliation continue to accumulate.

While Gallant’s actions may discredit the military and his own leadership, his primary aim appears to be impacting Netanyahu, who many Israelis view as prolonging the Gaza war for personal political gain.

Israel’s actual war losses are another key point. One of Israel’s historically best-kept secrets is its losses against Arab armies and resistance movements. Its casualties in the current war on Gaza are also supposed to be a well-kept secret, except they are not. Though the Israeli army has tried to minimize reports of its death toll since the start of the war on Oct. 7, 2023, it has faced many leaks, some initiated by the military itself. The aim? To put pressure on Netanyahu to end the war, especially in light of new information that at least half of Israel’s military reserves are refusing to return to the battlefield.

The internal conflict among Israel’s political, military and intelligence elites marks a departure from its long-cultivated image

Dr. Ramzy Baroud

Interestingly, it was Eyal Zamir, Netanyahu’s hand-picked replacement for Herzi Halevi as the Israeli military’s chief of staff, who surprised everyone in a speech shortly after his appointment in February. Zamir revealed that 5,942 Israeli families had “joined the list of bereaved families” in 2024.

Zamir, who had already committed to 2025 being another “year of war,” now seems less inclined to escalate the conflict beyond Israel’s ability to sustain it.

The war between Israel’s elites has never been so ugly, let alone open, as if both sides have reached the conclusion that their survival — and the survival of Israel itself — is dependent on them defeating the other camp.

After some reluctance and relatively careful choice of words, Gallant now appears to have joined the chorus of a powerful group of ex-officials who want to see Netanyahu out of power by any means necessary, including civil disobedience.

This internal conflict among Israel’s political, military and intelligence elites marks a departure from its long-cultivated image. For decades, Israel presented itself as a beacon of democracy and civilization amid what it portrayed as its less-cultured neighbors. However, the Gaza genocide has shattered this false narrative.

Consequently, the current infighting among the very architects of this Israeli fantasy offers an unprecedented opportunity to uncover deeper truths — not only about the war in Gaza but also about Israel’s history, from its establishment on the land of historic Palestine to the ongoing genocide nearly eight decades later.

• Dr. Ramzy Baroud is a journalist and author. He is editor of “The Palestine Chronicle” and nonresident senior research fellow at the Center for Islam and Global Affairs. His latest book, co-edited with Ilan Pappe, is “Our Vision for Liberation: Engaged Palestinian Leaders and Intellectuals Speak Out.” X: @RamzyBaroud