Although it is too early to gauge the full impact of what is by far the severest trauma Israel has ever sustained, some things are already clear: the tectonic plates have shifted, and Israel will not be the same. The political system has not yet adjusted to the change, and is still fighting old battles which will mean little for the future; the Israeli left and the American administration are both reading the map backwards, imagining an opportunity here for a “two-state solution.” Both are on a collision course with a newly emerging, far more hawkish Israeli consensus.
Gadi Taub is an author, historian, and op-ed columnist. He is co-host of Tablet’s Israel Update podcast.
Michael Doran is Director of the Center for Peace and Security in the Middle East and a Senior Fellow at the Hudson Institute in Washington, D.C.