by Brandon Goldman @realbgold
In only two weeks since the October 7th massacre in southern Israel, the country has already mobilized into a state of declared war against the terrorist group Hamas. The Israeli military has called up more than 350,000 reservists, making this the largest mobilization since the Yom Kippur War fifty years ago.
Yoel is a reservist who was called up from civilian life after serving 32 months in the Israeli Defense Forces starting at the age of 18. During that time, he served in the mortars division of the armored corps and handled riot control on Israeli borders in the West Bank, Gaza, Syria, and Egypt. Now, he spends his days on patrol duty, stationed roughly 60 miles north of the Gaza border at the Nachshonim base, awaiting orders for what may come next.
Below is the transcript of my interview with Yoel, in which we discuss what his experience has been like so far during this war and the situation on the ground in Israel.
For starters, how has it been at your base, and what is the sentiment of the other troops?
It’s quiet but also very busy. Troops and equipment moving back and forth from the north, here, and the south. Israelis are very good at staying positive and chipper, but in general, people are anxious and just waiting for something to happen. There’s also the daily distant booms, not usually loud, but they stand out. There have been three iron dome launches, though, that made us have to move to safe areas and were loud as hell.
Do you believe there will be a large-scale military operation to eliminate Hamas? And what about Hezbollah from the north in Lebanon?
Yes, but as usual, it’s likely we’ll stop halfway like we did in 2021. Hezbollah is very unlikely to join in. For Iran, losing them isn’t worth it until they plan something larger. They get more out of [Hezbollah] just being there to cause minor long-term damage both by firing and by psychological warfare.
President Biden has given a strong defense of Israel and its right to respond forcefully. At the same time, he has worked to get humanitarian aid flowing into Gaza, which will inevitably end up in the hands of Hamas. Do you think he’s got your back?
More of an iffy stance in regards to Gaza but a strong one against Iran. America has its own interests; it seemingly is still aiming for a two-state solution, which will never happen. It needs, however, Israel to exist so that it has a Western foot in the region. But that was also true about Afghanistan, so who knows?
Have you been surprised to see the large-scale demonstrations around the world in support of Hamas?
Not even a little. [Demonstrations occurred] last time also, although they’re probably larger-scale now.
What is one thing you want Americans to know about the situation right now that the media may be misleading them about?
I guess how people tend to see it as a strong against the weak situation, but especially at the start, most citizens here were terrified, all business paused, and people mostly stayed at home all of the first week. And many, even now, still are. This kind of fear and uncertainty, to some extent, is what the people living near Gaza have had to deal with for the last 20 years, even before we gave [control] back to Gaza.
Is Hamas stronger than people think? And were people shocked at the failures that occurred, which made it possible for this to even happen in the first place?
People tend to look at the physical military power and weapons but ignore the psychological ones. For example, with Hezbollah, for the last decade, they’ve been firing on a monthly basis. Not to cause damage but to remind the military and civilians that they could strike at any moment. The uncertainty itself is a form of weapon.
It’s been exactly the same on the Gaza border as well. In addition to bringing uncertainty and fear, it also makes people apathetic to the situation and less likely to take it seriously. But in general, people tend to only look at the situation like it is just a game of Risk, forgetting that the “pieces” are actually people, and the majority are civilians who are at the mercy of the outcome, hoping that the worst doesn’t come.