Israel’s politics have been rent by controversy over the Gaza Strip’s future after the war with Hamas ends. The superficially easy approach, espoused by opposition leader and former War Cabinet member Benny Gantz, is to announce a post-conflict governance plan for Gaza before hostilities conclude. The Biden administration supports this view, ostensibly to minimize risk and confusion when the shooting stops.  

Unfortunately, however, the superficially appealing answer is indeed superficial, dangerously so for Israel and those seeking to end both Hamas and the larger terrorist threat posed by Iran. The inescapable reality is that until Hamas’s political and military capabilities are destroyed, postwar planning is inherently sterile and unworkable.