Analysis | Surprise attack on Israel imperils region, risking multi-arena war
- Islamist group Hamas launched its biggest incursion into Israel in decades
- Implications for Middle East will be enormous if the conflict spreads elsewhere
A surprise multifront attack on Israel by the Palestinian group Hamas is likely to lead to a massive military retaliation on Gaza and possibly to a wider conflagration with repercussions beyond the Middle East.
The flare-up – involving infiltrations, capture of soldiers and civilians, and thousands of rockets – comes at a time of enormous diplomatic sensitivity and a moment of weakness for Israel that analysts have been warning its enemies might seek to exploit.
The country is in negotiations with the US and Saudi Arabia on a complex three-way deal in which Washington would offer security guarantees to Riyadh. The Saudis, for their part, would normalise relations with Israel.
Israel has also been talking with Turkey and others about gas exports to Europe along with corridors for trade from Asia.
Internally, Israel has been embroiled in political turmoil that left it vulnerable. Last April, the nation found itself briefly engaged on three fronts simultaneously – Gaza, Lebanon and Syria – after rocket fire came from all three.