An analysis by Dr. Michael Milstein (Ynet) recently highlighted how a Trump-brokered agreement has inadvertently inspired optimism within Hezbollah. Strengthened by a reality shaping up in their favor, Hezbollah has made its position clear: Israel must withdraw completely, with no freedom of action, and has vowed that the next generation will realize its vision of conquering the Galilee.

It is both astonishing and horrifying how, together and separately, Netanyahu and Trump have snatched total defeat from the jaws of a seeming semi-victory.

I have long maintained that Binyamin Netanyahu is the most dangerous person in Israel today. Unfortunately, he has worked tirelessly to prove me right.

Despite the many grudges Donald Trump holds against him, Netanyahu long cultivated the “BFF” relationship he believed would propel him into another term as prime minister. The political magician learned many of his autocratic tricks while licking the boots of the political neophyte Trump.

Before Trump’s first term, Netanyahu would push the envelope as far as he could until blocked or stopped. Trump taught him to ignore the envelope entirely – to commit as many wrong, unethical, and illegal acts in tandem as possible, ensuring the opposition would never have the time, resources, or field of vision to track and contest them all. They might catch some, but never enough.

Netanyahu followed in his BFF’s footsteps with complete subservience. How could anything go wrong? He never anticipated Trump reviving old grudges, cursing him publicly and privately, forcing him into deals he had sworn against, an – worst of all – growing tired of his wars. That exhaustion led Trump to cut deals without Israeli input, placing the country in worse positions than before the conflicts began. In his subservience, Netanyahu did what no other Israeli prime minister would ever do, even in their worst nightmares: he handed over Israel’s security to an American president, granting him veto power and the ability to decide Israel’s fate without Israel having a voice.

The effectiveness of the IDF’s operations on every front has been decimated – both by the deliberate lack of diplomatic action from Netanyahu’s government and by Netanyahu’s surrender of Israel’s future into the hands of the most unstable, unpredictable, and self-serving U.S. president in modern history. Trump has all but abandoned Israel’s future security, effectively declaring surrender to Iran. His agreements strengthen Iran and its proxies, placing them........

© The Times of Israel (Blogs)