As Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu geared up for what was intended as a triumphant visit to Washington, commencing on Monday, 7 July 2025, Hamas’ Al-Qassam Brigades in Beit Hanoun were meticulously preparing their own stark counter-narrative. On the very inaugural day of the Israeli leader’s high-stakes diplomatic trip, the battalion launched a devastating strike, inflicting significant casualties on Israeli soldiers. The Israeli army, notorious for obfuscating its military losses, begrudgingly acknowledged five soldiers killed and 14 wounded, some critically.

This audacious operation, coupled with numerous others across both northern and southern Gaza, offered an undeniable truth: Israel’s utter inability to secure any segment of the Strip. This failure undermines its proclaimed intent to establish control over the genocide-stricken territory, seemingly as a prelude to forcibly displacing the entire population, first to Rafah in the south, and ultimately, towards Egypt.

Netanyahu may possess a sharp political cunning, yet his acumen primarily serves his personal survival as a politician. It demonstrably fails to harness politics for the genuine good of his nation, let alone for global stability. He might project an image of eloquence, but this perceived mastery of words often flourishes only because he remains largely unchallenged within his customary political circles.

Consider, for instance, this pronouncement he uttered on July 6, 2025, just hours before his flight to Washington:

“Our joint involvement brought a great victory over our mutual enemy – Iran. Iran has dedicated itself, for years, to our destruction, and for years, we had apprehensions: What should we do about Iran? Would we be able to take on Iran? And now, our heroic pilots flew in the skies of Iran, and the IDF did wonders, along with the Mossad and all other security branches…”

Stripped of critical context, this self-congratulatory declaration implies an earth-shattering event poised to fundamentally alter “the face of the Middle East,” a favored refrain of Netanyahu’s. Yet, beyond the relentless and baseless claims of having decisively defeated Iran – a narrative utterly devoid of credibility among sober political analysts – mere hours later,........

© Middle East Monitor