Netanyahu's 'Gang of Destroyers'; “What else needs to happen for this hollow house of cards to collapse?”

Conflicts Forum’s compilation tracking strategic developments in Israel, 11 April 2025

“I've never seen anything like this, but lately the people [at Shin Bet] seem broken” /

War on Iran -- Israel maintains its military option /

“Shoot to Kill”: Gaza, an uninhabitable kill zone, where “rules of engagement are nonexistent” /

Israel preparing to turn Rafah (one-fifth of Gaza) into a buffer zone; Rafah City may be wiped out /

The “Emirates Model” for Palestinians -- “There will never be a Palestinian state”

[These compilations are drawn from analysis & commentary by leading Israeli political and security commentators, predominantly published in Hebrew — as reports published in Hebrew often provide a different window on Israeli internal discourse].

THE GANG OF DESTROYERS -- “What else needs to happen for this hollow house of cards to collapse?”

The Gang of Destroyers (Ben Caspit, Ma’ariv): These are days for rubbing our eyes and for hearing ringing in our ears. For seeing, hearing, and not believing. Now they’re trying to dismantle the GSS [Shin Bet]. They’ve already done it to all the other institutions. A smug gang sits in the news studio competing with each other. “Dismantle the GSS,” says one … they aren’t joking. They are serious … The central parasite, the chief motor of the poison, from his Miami abode, continues to sling mud at the GSS around the clock with particularly venomous language. He does this while surrounded by three GSS bodyguards who cost us millions. They stick with him, through fire and water— they are in the fire; he is mainly in the water. He maligns their commander, their organization, their oath and their mission while living at our expense, a professional parasite who has never done anything useful or worked for a living. So what will we do after we dismantle the GSS? We can always work with Qatar’s GSS … And after the GSS, we can also privatize the Mossad …

“I've never seen anything like this, but lately the people [at Shin Bet] seem broken”, Caspit writes — Ronen Bar has … serious failings. He failed to warn of war. He is one of the main people responsible for the failure. He accepted it and he will not complete his term. … But it's not just the head of the Shin Bet. This is the Shin Bet. I've never seen anything like this, but lately the people there seem broken. They're contacting me anonymously, they're contacting me from people who have been released, and they're talking about their feelings. They're turning their organization into an enemy of the people … They're spreading disgusting lies … and now even in front of the High Court of Justice ….