Netanyahu Bet Everything on Trump—And Lost (w/ Andrew Fox) | Mona Charen Show

Netanyahu made a significant error by alienating US Democrats and placing all of Israel's diplomatic eggs in the Trump basket. This strategy has backfired, leaving Israel vulnerable to international isolation as Trump's support wanes and global opinion shifts.

The guest states, 'He cut off the Democrats in America. You know, he focused everything all his eggs were in the Trump basket. Um and that is horribly backfired this week as we've seen.'

The US military campaign against Iran, despite deploying significant air and naval power, failed to remove the regime or achieve its objectives. This has rendered the 'all options are on the table' threat empty, as Iran weathered the attacks and maintained power, demonstrating the limits of military force without a coherent strategy or ground component.

The host notes, 'Trump has now pulled the trigger. He has done the military action... And they weathered it. They just They just took the punch and they held onto power. And now that threat, it seems to me, is completely empty.' The guest agrees, 'how do we how do we look for any kind of a bright spot in that dark cloud? And I think the way we look at it is that actually the 12-day war was incredibly effective. You know, it didn't it didn't remove the regime, but it did degrade their missile stocks.'

Hamas systematically transformed Gaza's civilian areas into a vast fighting network, constructing 400 miles of tunnels, 5,700 tunnel shafts within buildings, and placing IEDs every 50 yards. This strategy aimed to maximize civilian casualties, which Hamas then exploited for propaganda to undermine Israel's global standing. Civilians were actively prevented from evacuating by Hamas at gunpoint or through counter-messaging.

The guest details, 'every house had had some sort of connection to this fighting network and they turned the city into a fighting environment... there was an IED almost every... 50 yards or so.' He also mentions 'aerial footage of Hamas gunmen... forcing people back' and Hamas Telegram channels telling people 'not to listen to the Jews. Stay where you are... It's a trick.'

The claims of genocide and famine in Gaza are strongly refuted. Israel's military operations were subject to legal oversight, with up to 50% of strikes canceled due to civilian protection concerns. The death toll (less than 3% of the population over two and a half years) is inconsistent with genocidal intent, and Israel conducted humanitarian efforts like polio vaccinations for 600,000 babies. Regarding famine, UN figures show over 3,000 calories per person per day were supplied, but Hamas hoarded and sold aid, causing localized hunger.

The guest states, 'as many as 50% of strikes in Gaza were actually canceled because, you know, the civilian protection measures weren't there.' He adds, 'less than 3% of the population in two and a half years... is not a genocide.' On famine, 'More than 3,000 calories per person per day on average went into Gaza during the war.' and 'Hamas was seizing nine in every 10 trucks and hoarding the aid and then selling it.'

Despite extensive efforts to mitigate civilian harm and the operational realities of fighting Hamas's human shield strategy, Israel failed to effectively communicate these facts to the world. This communication vacuum allowed Hamas's propaganda to dominate the information landscape, leading to a widespread negative view of Israel and increased diplomatic pressure.

The guest notes, 'one of the IDF's huge failings is the failure to explain that properly... you are going to get crucified on the world stage because you you're simply not explaining what you're doing to people.' He also mentions 'soldiers taking their mobile phones in, messing around in Gazans' houses... just a huge strategic own goal.'