The Israeli newspaper Haaretz described the recent military operation in Gaza as a catastrophic failure of the Israeli policy in the Strip, denouncing the repetition of these military operations, and the resulting disruption to the daily lives of Israelis and turning the lives of Palestinians in Gaza into a constant nightmare.
To stop this “march of foolishness,” the newspaper, in its editorial for today, urged Israel to completely change its compass, stressing that it must, first and foremost, promote the reconstruction of Gaza and issue more permits to bring building materials and other goods into the Strip, to improve the economic situation and civilians in Gaza, as this is an "Israeli interest of the first degree."
Haaretz saw that one good option, for Israel to change its strategy in Gaza, might be to adopt the two-stage plan proposed by Yair Lapid, who was foreign minister in September 2021 and is now prime minister, which he called the "economy for security" plan.
The first phase involves humanitarian reconstruction, under which Israel allows Gaza to rehabilitate its electricity system, connect it to gas pipelines, build desalination plants and improve its health system in exchange for a long-term calm.
As for the second phase, it went further, and called for building an artificial island off the Strip on which a sea port could be built, as well as encouraging international investment and joint economic projects in which Israel, Egypt and the Palestinian Authority participate.
Haaretz concluded by saying that this is a golden opportunity for the prime minister to chart a completely new course in Israel's relations with Gaza, and to instill hope among many Israelis and many Gazans who are tired of the "brutal" cycle of violence.