In an op-ed published on Monday following the release of all living Israeli hostages, legal scholar Alan Dershowitz argues that while President Donald Trump deserves “enormous credit” for brokering a ceasefire and securing the release of hostages, the true “essential prerequisite” for the diplomatic success was Israel’s decisive military victories across the region.
Dershowitz, a Harvard Law Professor Emeritus, contends that a cold peace—and a potential “stepping stone to a more enduring and somewhat warmer peace”—was only made possible because Israel demonstrated overwhelming strength, which led to a weakened Hamas and a loss of support from key allies like Hezbollah, Syria, and Iran.
Strength as a Precursor to Peace
The op-ed, titled “Trump’s Peace Plan Succeeds Because of Israel’s Military Victories,” directly attributes the negotiated compromise to the “decisive military victories in Gaza, Lebanon, Syria, and Iran,” arguing that without these military accomplishments, Hamas would still be fighting and the hostages held in Gaza tunnels.
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Dershowitz praised the Trump administration’s “brilliant diplomacy” and its success in uniting a coalition of Arab and Muslim states. However, he maintains this diplomacy could only succeed after Israel’s military actions coerced Hamas into accepting terms that its supporters might view as “near-suicidal to the organization.”
Rejecting Calls for ‘Restraint’
The scholar strongly criticized the advice offered by the Biden administration, along with figures in the media and academia, who advocated for “restraint.” He argues that had Israel followed this “awful advice,” it would not have entered Rafah, abandoned the Philadelphi corridor, failed to bomb Iranian nuclear facilities, and would have agreed to a ceasefire on “disadvantageous terms.”
According to Dershowitz, the international “anti-Israel and antisemitic demonstrations” would not have diminished regardless of Israel’s military choices, as they were not intended to help Palestinians but to “hurt the nation-state of the Jewish people.”
READ: Two Years Of Captivity Ends: All 20 Surviving Hostages Freed In Israel-Hamas Ceasefire Deal
Deterrence Through Disproportionate Payback
Dershowitz states that Israel was “wise to ignore the ignorant and bigoted condemnation” and instead focus on the one thing its enemies understand: “victory through strength.”
He explicitly calls for a policy of “disproportionate payback” to ensure that the enemies of the Jewish state are deterred from future attacks like the one on October 7. “The message Israel has sent is that for every Israeli life that is taken by terrorists, multiple terrorists’ lives will be taken, even if that requires some collateral damage to non-terrorists who support or cheer-on the terrorism,” he writes.
The op-ed concludes with the conviction that deterrence through overwhelmingly disproportionate strength is the “only way the Jewish state can live in peace and safety” and the only way other Arab and Muslim nations will be encouraged to join the Abraham Accords. This peace, he warns, will endure “only as long as this overwhelming strength endures, along with a willingness to use it when necessary.”
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