For long years, as an editor at Al-Manar, I was warned against using the misleading term of “Israel Defense Forces”, also referred to as the “IDF”. The editing policy was based on a belief that the Zionist entity has never been in a state of defense. The occupying regime, which has killed tens of thousands of people in the region since its establishment in 1948, has been in a state of offense.
On the other hand, the resistance forces, which have been confronting the Israeli occupation, were confined to a defensive posture. Although many confrontations, throughout nearly 30 years, were seen as offensive, their aim was merely defensive.
In the latest months, many commentators talked about the resistance groups’ shift from defensive forces to offensive ones in a significant paradigm transformation in the region’s power dynamics.
The commentators reported the shift, citing the expertise the resistance groups accumulated during several decades of battles and wars against the Israeli enemy and the Takfiris as well.
On October 7, 2023, 50 years following the 1973’s October War, Gaza-based Palestinian resistance launched an unprecedent surprise attack on the Zionist entity.
Sirens sounded throughout southern Israel and rocket fire could be seen as far as occupied Al-Quds (Jerusalem).
The operation, dubbed “Operation Al-Aqsa Flood”, began after six in Saturday’s morning. It combined between rocket fire, infiltrations and attacks along the border of Gaza.
According to Israeli media, the Zionist entity “dictated the tempo of the conflict” in the past battles. However, the attack on Saturday was different, as it was unprecedented in the size and the extent, implying that the resistance managed this time to impose the tempo of the conflict.
“Today the storm has broken. While it remains to be seen how this attack will continue to unfold and what Israel’s overall response will be, it is clear that Hamas and terror groups in Gaza have sought to dictate the tempo of the conflict, attempting to wrest that decision from Israel,” The Jerusalem Post’s Seth J. Frantzman wrote on Saturday, hours after Operation Al-Aqsa Flood.
In fact overall, it has been clear that the transformation has hit the Israeli army as well. Such a widespread assault that killed or injured hundreds of Israelis in few hours, puts the Zionist entity in a state of defense, making the term “Israel Defense Forces” more suitable for its army.
Source: Al-Manar English Website
