Using diplomatic, informational, military, and economic elements of national power for Israel and ourselves

The October 7 Hamas attack against Israel is a day that will live in infamy for the Israeli people and its primary ally, the United States. In perspective, the Israeli death toll of over a thousand civilians in a population of less than 10-million would be the equivalent of almost 40,000 Americans being brutally slaughtered in their homes.

Pearl Harbor involved the killing of less than 2,000 members of the military on a U.S. territory in the Pacific, and yet brought America to total war seeking unconditional surrender of its enemies.

Israel “must” root out Hamas from Gaza

Israel cannot let October 7 go with simply a cease fire, or they will inevitably face more dastardly attacks from Islamist enemies.

Israel “must” root out Hamas from Gaza, particularly as Israel had forced its settlers from Gaza in 2005 to allow Palestinian control and was then rewarded with the election of Hamas to power and calls for the obliteration of Jews and Israel. The problem for Israel is the number of regional and international challenges throughout the Islamic world generated by Iran. When viewing the elements of national power the U.S. can bring to bear for Israel, we should think in terms of what my fellow colonels, Navy captains, and I, as well as senior agency leaders are taught about national strategy in Senior Service College of the acronym DIME: Diplomatic, Informational, Military, and Economic.

First, with regards to Egypt we should use the diplomatic and economic elements to leverage Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el Sisi to allow Palestinians from Northern Gaza to sanctuary in the northern Sinai city of al Arish and its outskirts.

We already bankroll the Egyptian military as part of the Camp David Accords of 1979 which brought the historic peace between Egypt and Israel.

Turkey can help push el Sisi to allow Palestinians respite in el Arish

I served on that peacekeeping mission: “Multinational Forces and Observers [MFO]” out of Sinai 1996-1997. I had the opportunity to see the wide-open land in Sinai in comparison with traversing the Rafah border crossing from Sinai to overcrowded Gaza. The Palestinians could be housed in northern Sinai along the Mediterranean (not the harsh desert to the south) until Israeli operations clearing out Hamas are complete. Egypt has a stake in substantial US military assistance, as well as U.S. involvement in the critical piece of the MFO mission. We could obtain guarantees from Israel of the reentry of those Palestinians who must flee the Israeli operations to destroy Hamas. We should also put the pressure on Turkey by way of its NATO membership and economic ties with the EU and the U.S. to stop threatening incursion if Israel invades. Turkey can help push el Sisi to allow Palestinians respite in el Arish.

Second, with regards to Iran which is supplying and coordinating attacks in the region against Israel, we need to stop the Biden rhetoric of “no evidence of Iran’s involvement” and publicize our view of Iran’s clear role.

The administration already failed when it unfroze the six-billion dollars for Iran and helped drop sanctions by the flawed Iran nuclear deal (JCPOA). However, it can still re-freeze that money and make clear we are seeking additional sanctions for Iran’s role in the attack. All circumstantial evidence points to Iran’s role in the Hamas attack and coordination of Shiite groups (Hezbollah, Houthis, Iraq “resistance”) in the region against Israel and the US.

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We must regain the perception of strength by way of the elements of national power and ensure the horror of October 7 never happens again

Moving U.S. carrier strike groups into the Persian Gulf and Mediterranean is important, but we must beef up our defensive posture at U.S. bases in Iraq and Syria and provide the ability to strike back with overwhelming force to attacks. Neither Iran nor the U.S. want a direct war, but the way to get Iran to back down is through strength in our military posture in support to Israel and to our bases. They must believe we are ready to go to war and that we will go to war if necessary.

The informational element is critical and we need to do better. The Iranians, through the elite Quds Force of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, has clearly performed well with information warfare after the Hamas attack. Despite the heinousness of the Hamas atrocities, protests were quickly generated by media sources throughout the Islamic World and the West against Israel. The informational framing of terror group Islamic Jihad’s bombing of the Baptist Hospital in Gaza showed the level of sophistication by Iran and proxies. They quickly put the false blame on Israel throughout the world. We need to get on top of information warfare by calling out the Iranian involvement and responsibility for all the deaths, Israeli and Palestinian. Though Hamas is Sunni, exposing Iranian involvement could help put the wedge back between fundamentalist Shiite Iran and traditional Sunni allies like Turkey, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Jordan. One of the greatest dangers to Israel (and the U.S.) is for Sunni and Shiite worlds to fully unite against Israel. We need to show Iran seeks to control the Sunni Islamic world under its totalitarian regime through this war.

The Biden administration has brought America to the brink of war by allowing a wide-ranging perception of weakness. Weakness through ineptitude in the botched Afghanistan withdrawal, to gross judgment in restarting the flawed Iranian nuclear deal. We must regain the perception of strength by way of the elements of national power and ensure the horror of October 7 never happens again.

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