Israel’s ex-secret service chief warns: “You can’t bomb away an ideology”

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If anyone knows anything about Israel, it’s probably Yuval Diskin (67). From 2005 to 2011, he headed the Shin Bet domestic secret service. He tells “Spiegel” what he thinks about the current war – and why the destruction of Hamas is impossible.

For Diskin, the major attack on October 7 means one thing above all: a failure on Israel’s part. In an interview with the newspaper, he explains: “Our army, our politicians, everyone seems to have believed that peace here would last forever. We experienced a strategic surprise. There have never been so many deaths on Israeli soil. Until now, we have always managed to fight and wage war beyond our borders.”

Since then, trust in the Israeli government has been shattered – both among the population and among Diskin. He says: “I felt how these people felt: betrayed by their state, by their army.” That is why it is clear to the ex-secret service chief: “The hostages must be our priority.” Saving their lives is more important than destroying Hamas. “This is the only way we as a state can regain the trust of our citizens.”

“Our society is becoming increasingly extremist”

Although the bloody attack came as a surprise, Diskin said it didn’t happen out of nowhere. For decades, there have been repeated violent clashes between Palestinians and Israelis, especially in Israeli-occupied territories. Diskin warns: “It’s all connected. Parts of Israel have been transformed into an extremist society in which messianic movements, national religious groups and settlers set the tone.” At the same time, Hamas was given “all the time in the world to plan this massacre.”

Diskin blames Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (74) for these developments. “He brought us to the brink of civil war, pitted Israelis against each other, appointed convicted extremists as ministers and believed that this way he could control everything and everyone.”

The situation is particularly bad in the West Bank: “The fanatical extremist settlers threaten the Palestinian residents and sometimes even kill them. It saddens me to see that the government tolerates this. I and others have been warning for years that our country is becoming increasingly extremist.” For Diskin, one thing is certain: sooner or later he will have to pay for what Netanyahu has “done to the country.”

“You cannot bomb away an ideology”

But Diskin does not only see the government as guilty. What happened on October 7 was a ‘clash of civilisations’. He explains: “Hamas is the Palestinian branch of the Muslim Brotherhood. The Islamists claim what they consider to be a truly Muslim country. Their mission: an Islamic state.” According to Diskin, there are “an infinite number of Muslims who don’t think like that,” but he warns that “the Muslim Brotherhood is like that.”

Because of his deeply held ideology, the former secret service chief doubts whether Israel can ever destroy Hamas. “Hamas will continue to exist; you can’t bomb an ideology. The only thing you can do is reduce their military capacity and ensure that the Islamists no longer rule.”

Other experts have already warned that the bloody war in Gaza could even lead to more people joining Hamas after the war ends, fueled by the trauma and anger of the current aggression.

The US sets the time frame for war

However, it is unclear exactly when the war will be over. Diskin thinks he can hold on for another month or two. The reason for this is the American elections. “It is not Israel or Netanyahu who controls anything here. The US elections set the timeframe for this war – and the war here is not good for US President Joe Biden. Biden supports Israel like no American president has ever done. But of course he wants something in return: to have a say in what we do in Gaza. Biden needs rest.”

What comes after the war is also largely unclear. Diskin speculates that Israel could rule northern Gaza. “But in the south, Hamas will probably survive.” The “only way out of this conflict” is still a “regional agreement involving Israel, the Palestinians, but also Jordan and Egypt.” A military occupation of the Gaza Strip cannot guarantee Israel’s security. “In the long run there is only one thing: peace.” (Mrs)

Source: Blick