For the first time in nearly two years of war against Hamas, Lebanon, Yemen, Iran and the subsequent bombings of Syria, Iraq and Qatar, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has admitted that his country was facing isolation as international pressure keeps mounting to end the war in Gaza.
It has happened for the first time in nearly 7 decades that Israel is finding itself isolated on the world stage. This comes after more than half of the global nations condemned Israeli actions in Gaza, including the 27 from the EU and other Western blocs.
Netanyahu said, “We are entering a kind of isolation, and we will have to increasingly adjust to an economy with characteristics of self-sufficiency.” The Israeli economy has also slowed down due to the ongoing conflict, which has forced investors to seek better and more reliable markets elsewhere.
The toll the Israeli economy is taking is also reflected in a statement from the prime minister stating the country now lives “in a sort of political isolation” and must act accordingly.
According to Western analysts, Israel has not been able to defeat Hamas and is struggling to pull in reserves for the duty, while Israeli soldiers are reluctant to enter Gaza City.
Israel failed to defeat Hezbollah, lost against Iran, and is struggling against the Houthis; rather, the multi-front war has drained Israeli military reserves and ordnance, as more Houthi missiles are landing inside the country than ever before.
Political commentators believe that without US support, Netanyahu's government would collapse within a week, if not days, as there is a possible civil war brewing in the country. While Netanyahu has called for self-reliance and boosting domestic production, it is going to be pretty tough for the government to maintain self-sufficiency as it depends on the West.
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Several Western nations, including the UK, Spain and Canada, have already halted arms exports to Israel in recent months. Some staunch Israel supporters have pulled their hand out, fearing the widespread domestic instability, including that France, Australia, Spain, Norway and the UK, have announced plans to recognise Palestinian statehood at the UN General Assembly meetings later this month.
Meanwhile, major opposition leader Yair Lapid denounced Netanyahu’s comments as “insane”. His post on X highlighted the brewing discord in Israeli politics as he wrote, “Isolation is not fate. It is the product of Netanyahu’s misguided and failed policies. He is turning Israel into a third-world country and is not even trying to change course.”
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