Ayman Safadi, the foreign minister of Jordan, never fails to be hostile to Israel.
Since the October 7 rampage by Hamas in southern Israel, he has lashed out at Israel repeatedly, falsely claiming that it has committed genocide in the Gaza Strip.
Presumably, his opinion is shared by King Abdullah II, who has been cool toward Israel since his accession to the Hashemite throne in 1999. He and his late father, King Hussein, are poles apart regarding their respective attitudes toward Israel.
Instead of condemning Hamas, which resorts to terrorism as a weapon of war and rejects Jordan’s full-throated endorsement of a two-state solution, Safadi attacks Israel incessantly.
In his latest rhetorical blast, he claimed that Israel’s assassination of Ismail Haniyeh, Hamas’ chief political figure, was an unmistakable sign of the Israeli government’s determination to sabotage the on-again, off-again ceasefire/hostage talks hosted by the United States, Qatar and Egypt.
These negotiations have dragged on interminably without a clear breakthrough due, in large part, to Hamas’ intransigence, though both sides have blamed each other for the constant delays and setbacks.
Until Haniyeh’s death, the talks were unsuccessful because of his of unrealistic demands. As Hamas’ chief negotiator, he demanded a permanent ceasefire and a full Israeli withdrawal from Gaza so as to maintain the intolerable status quo ante in Gaza. In other words, he sought to save Hamas by preserving its military capabilities, such as they are after nearly ten months of war, and maintaining its governance of Gaza.
Israel, of course, cannot and should not accept these conditions. To achieve victory, Israel needs to seriously degrade or destroy Hamas’ military wing and permanently end its rule of Gaza. It goes without saying that, since Hamas is a stubborn and resilient foe, Israeli forces in Gaza will probably need several more years to accomplish these twin strategic objectives.
Which is precisely why Israel should refrain from pulling out of Gaza until it categorically achieves both goals. The sacrifices of 330 Israeli soldiers who have been killed in Gaza since last October will be in vain if Israel is forced to leave Gaza prematurely.
While Israel should do everything in its power to recover its hostages, it should not do so at the price of losing the war. The lives of the poor hostages are of paramount importance, but the lives of millions of Israelis are more important.
If Israel allows Hamas to survive as Gaza’s governing authority, there will be more October 7 attacks in the future, as Hamas has boasted.
Safadi does not appear to understand these fine but glaring points.
In a statement on August 1, he said, “Yesterday, Israel assassinated Ismail Haniyeh. He was the one who was negotiating the exchange deal. So how on earth is a country that wants to conclude a deal killing the main interlocutor in those negotiations? So when (Prime Minister Benjamin) Netanyahu sent his missiles to assassinate Haniyeh in Iran in violation of the sovereignty of another country and bringing escalation to a very high level, is that somebody who wants the deal to work?” Safadi, in closing, claimed that Israel had “decided to undermine all that.”
Demanding action by the international community to rein in Israel, he said, “The (United Nations) Security Council must not allow a state that has turned rogue to impose more wars and more destruction on the region.”
Safadi has got it all wrong.
First, it was Hamas that triggered the ongoing war in Gaza. Israel had not choice but to respond to its naked aggression. Under international law, Israel has a right and a duty to defend its sovereignty and protect its people.
Second, Haniyeh’s demands of Israel were outlandish. Under his misguided direction, the talks had no chance of success. He will not be missed.
Third, Haniyeh was one of the masterminds of the October 7 massacre, which resulted in the deaths of roughly 1,200 Israelis and foreign nationals. Having been directly complicit in that attack, his demise was inevitable.
Fourth, Safadi conveniently ignores the fact that Iran, the main destabilizing force in the Middle East, has repeatedly violated Israel’s sovereignty by virtue of its sponsorship and support of surrogates such as Hamas, Hezbollah, the Houthis in Yemen and Islamic fundamentalists in Iraq.
Fifth, Israel is not a “rogue” state but an internationally-recognized nation fighting an existential battle against malevolent forces in the region.
Sixth, Safadi should not forget that Israel and Jordan are formally at peace thanks to the 1995 peace treaty, and that Jordan would be in desperate straits without the steady supply of drinking water from Israel.
He should remember these facts before he takes the easy way out and launches gratuitous attacks on Israel.