Reports have emerged both in the mainstream and social media about limited Israeli Defence Forces’ incursions into Gaza in an overnight operation. The incursion, however, lasted only a few hours and Israeli forces retreated from the area. This was perhaps done to allow the ground forces to gain a feel for the land and what is to be expected from them in the coming weeks.
In connection with Israel’s ground invasion is perhaps the most alarming news of preparations by the IDF to flood Hamas’ expansive network of tunnels with nerve agents. This plan is apparently going to be carried out under the supervision of US Delta Force commandos. If this is a fact and becomes operational, it could have a devastating impact not only on Hamas but on the entire nature of the current warfare as well as warfare in the future.
Nerve agents are categorized as Chemical/Biological Weapons whose use is banned under international law. The alleged US support for such an initiative by Israel is even more surprising as the US administrations have historically condemned their use and have even gone to wars with other nations under the pretext of dismantling their chemical weapons’ stockpiles. The USA, however, seems to be more concerned with protecting Israel, even at the cost of compromising its already crumbling soft power projection. It is the least one can expect from the supposed champion of humanitarian laws.
Another aspect of this development relates to the targets of these chemical weapons. There is a high probability that Israeli hostages taken by Hamas could be situated in the same tunnels Israel is preparing to poison. In context of this, it will not only hurt Hamas fighters but also the hostages. How Israel intends to prevent the possibility of harming their own nationals is unknown yet. Hamas, on the other hand will definitely utilize the hostages in a manner that will make counter-value targeting a great challenge for the IDF.
Notwithstanding the ground realities, such an attempt by Israel will open the gates of hell. It might set a trend of using biological and chemical weapons by other actors in the war which may enter the scene should the war expand in magnitude. Out of all other actors, Lebanon’s Hezbollah will be a cause of grave concern for the Israelis as they are believed to possess short to medium range missiles. A report by Center for Strategic and International Studies suggests that Hezbollah might be in possession of SCUD-B/C missiles which are capable of delivering chemical weapon warheads. What raises the possibility of use of chemical/biological weapons by Hezbollah is the increasing anti-Israeli sentiment across the world, and the Muslim world in particular. Using nerve agents against Hamas may prove to be lethal for Israel as the conflict keeps on attaining a no-holds barred character. This is still only a possibility, since Hezbollah is not known to possess biological weapons but its close ties with state actors such as Syria and Iran increases its chances of procuring such technologies.
The use of nerve agents by Israel, if authorized, may have a domino effect for further escalation of the conflict. It might prompt other actors to use similar weapons against Israel or if not that, then at least increase the magnitude of retaliatory attacks on Israel by its regional adversaries. All of this will boil down to a further intensification of the conflict and may prompt the use of more sophisticated weapon systems by all sides.
Another cause of concern should be the recent military parade in Sanaa, Yemen where they showcased the array of sophisticated missiles some of which are capable of reaching targets in Israel. In case of an escalation, Yemen remains a staunch ally of Iran in the region within lethal range of Israeli as well as US assets in the region.
The use of nerve agents by Israel, if authorized, may have a domino effect for further escalation of the conflict. It might prompt other actors to use similar weapons against Israel or if not that, then at least increase the magnitude of retaliatory attacks on Israel by its regional adversaries. All of this will boil down to a further intensification of the conflict and may prompt the use of more sophisticated weapon systems by all sides.
Israel and the USA should not engage in such a folly and should not lead themselves to believe that there will not be far-reaching and devastating effects of such measures. The international community needs to intervene now before the Israeli invasion of Gaza escalates to a serious military crisis in the Middle East.
