What the Arab World Knew All Along & How Israel Lost the Information War | Einat Wilf
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Summary
Takeaways
- ❖Einat Wilf, initially a staunch Israeli leftist, became disillusioned after Palestinian leaders rejected comprehensive peace offers and denied Jewish historical ties to the land.
- ❖She coined 'West Planing' to describe how Western observers rationalize clear Palestinian statements of intent as mere negotiating positions.
- ❖Palestinians consistently state their commitment to the non-existence of a Jewish state, a truth often ignored by the international community.
- ❖The October 7th attacks were a surprise in Israel's defense failure, but not in the Palestinian intent to destroy the Jewish state.
- ❖Palestinians are a 'highly capable people' with strategic vision and planning, not a 'charity basket case,' as demonstrated by the October 7th operations.
- ❖The global information war is where Israel is losing, as its enemies effectively mobilize narratives to delegitimize Jewish self-determination.
- ❖For true peace, Palestinians must 'embrace defeat' of their anti-Zionist ideology, similar to post-WWII Germany or Japan, rather than being encouraged to continue the struggle.
Insights
1The Disillusionment of the Israeli Left
Einat Wilf, a former Israeli Labor Party member and architect of the Oslo Accords, recounts her personal journey from believing in 'land for peace' to realizing the Palestinian leadership's true intentions. She describes how comprehensive peace proposals, including a fully sovereign Palestinian state with a capital in East Jerusalem, were rejected by Arafat and later Abu Mazen, leading her to question what Palestinians truly wanted beyond the destruction of Israel.
Wilf's account of Ehud Barak's Camp David proposal () and Arafat walking away (), followed by the Second Intifada (). Her meetings with 'moderate Palestinians' who denied Jewish peoplehood and connection to the land ().
2The Core Conflict: Rejection of Jewish Sovereignty
Wilf argues that the fundamental conflict is not about borders, settlements, or occupation, but the Palestinian refusal to accept any Jewish sovereignty in any part of the land. She highlights that this stance has been consistent since before Israel's establishment, citing British foreign minister Ernest Bevin's 1947 speech describing an 'irreconcilable conflict' where Jews sought a state and Arabs sought to resist Jewish sovereignty 'to the last.'
British Foreign Minister's 1947 speech () stating the Jews' priority was a sovereign state and the Arabs' priority was to 'resist to the last' the establishment of Jewish sovereignty in any part of the land ().
3October 7th: A Surprise in Collapse, Not Intent
Wilf asserts that while the scale of Israel's defense collapse on October 7th was a massive surprise, the intent behind the attacks was not. She had been warning for years that Gaza was being used as a launchpad for destroying Israel, not for building a better Palestinian society, and that the billions in aid were being diverted to military infrastructure like tunnels.
Wilf's warnings to European diplomats in 2018 about cement being used for tunnels () and her statement that October 7th was 'a massive surprise and in another respect not at all' ().
4Palestinian Capabilities and the 'Charity Basket Case' Myth
Wilf challenges the narrative of Palestinians as helpless victims, emphasizing their high capabilities. She points to the sophisticated planning, investment, and discipline required for the October 7th attacks as evidence that they are not a 'charity basket case' but a capable people with a clear, albeit destructive, vision.
Her statement, 'Can we please finally acknowledge that they are a highly capable people?' () and detailing the 'massive investment in infrastructure, strategy, vision, discipline, training, preparation, economic and financial planning' required for October 7th ().
5Israel's Failure in the Global Information War
Wilf argues that Israel is losing the global information war, which she estimates constitutes 70% of the conflict. While Israel may win physically on the ground, it fails to counter the narrative globally, allowing its enemies to mobilize public opinion by framing Jewish self-determination as 'toxic' and 'evil' through continuous lies and allegations like 'apartheid' and 'genocide.'
Her assertion that '70% of the war was not even there. It was globally in people's minds on screens with words. And I would argue that for that war, we were effectively a no-show' (). She also mentions the 'Brandolini principle' regarding the asymmetry of effort to refute lies ().
Bottom Line
The 'end of history' euphoria in the 1990s, following the collapse of the Soviet Union and other global conflicts, led Israelis to project their desire for self-determination and statehood onto Palestinians, mistakenly believing they shared the same goals.
This projection contributed to Israel's 'desperation for peace' and its willingness to overlook red flags, ultimately leading to a misdiagnosis of the conflict's core and a flawed peace process.
Recognizing this historical misstep can inform future diplomatic efforts, emphasizing the need for clear communication and a realistic assessment of opposing parties' stated intentions, rather than wishful thinking.
The term 'Palestine' was historically associated with Jewish self-determination, with 'Palestinians' often referring to Jews in the early 20th century, before its 'effective erasure and hijacking' by Arab groups.
This historical context directly contradicts the modern narrative of an ancient Palestinian Arab state, exposing a deliberate re-framing of history that fuels the current conflict and delegitimizes Israel's historical claims.
Educating the public on the historical evolution of terms like 'Palestine' and 'Palestinians' can help dismantle misinformation and provide a more accurate foundation for understanding the conflict's origins.
Anti-Zionism is presented as the 'ideology of failed societies,' where blaming Israel, Zionism, or Jews for internal failures serves as a scapegoat, preventing Arab societies from addressing their own problems and building constructive futures.
This perspective suggests that the perpetuation of anti-Zionism is not just about external conflict but an internal mechanism for maintaining power and deflecting accountability within certain Arab states and movements.
Promoting 'Arab Zionism' – where Arab countries embrace Jewish self-determination and focus on internal development rather than external blame – offers a pathway to regional stability and prosperity, as exemplified by the Emirates.
Key Concepts
West Planing
A term coined by Einat Wilf to describe the phenomenon where Western diplomats, journalists, and academics take clear, public statements from Palestinians about their goals (e.g., non-existence of a Jewish state) and reinterpret them as merely negotiating positions or expressions of grievance, rather than their literal stated intent. This leads to 'comforting lies' that obstruct understanding the true nature of the conflict.
Embracing Defeat
Drawing a parallel to post-World War II Japan and Germany, this model suggests that for a lasting peace, the Palestinian side must internalize and accept the defeat of their destructive ideology (anti-Zionism) and commit to a constructive vision of co-existence. The current international environment, however, often prevents this necessary 'drawing of the line' by validating continued resistance.
Lessons
- Prioritize listening to the explicit, public statements of all parties in a conflict, especially those that seem 'preposterous,' rather than reinterpreting them through a desired lens (avoid 'West Planing').
- Challenge narratives that portray one side as inherently incapable or a 'charity basket case,' as this can mask sophisticated strategic intent and capabilities.
- Recognize that winning a physical war does not equate to winning the information war; invest equally in shaping global narratives and countering misinformation with clear, empirically supported arguments.
Notable Moments
Wilf's personal 'waking up' moment after meeting 'moderate Palestinians' who denied Jewish peoplehood and connection to the land, despite her being a poster child of the Israeli left.
This moment highlights the profound ideological chasm that she discovered, which fundamentally shifted her understanding of the conflict from a territorial dispute to an existential one regarding Jewish identity and right to exist.
Her 2018 warning to European diplomats about cement aid to Gaza being used for tunnels, years before October 7th, which was ignored.
This demonstrates a critical failure of Western policy and intelligence to heed clear warnings and understand the stated intentions of Hamas, directly contributing to the conditions that enabled the October 7th attacks.
Quotes
"I invented a word for it. I called it West Planing. Is when Western diplomats and journalists and academics take what Palestinians fairly clearly say, and then they go, 'No, they don't really mean it. It's just a negotiating position.'"
"Can we please finally acknowledge that they are a highly capable people? Because October 7th, can we agree required massive investment in infrastructure, strategy, vision, a perverse vision, but vision, discipline, training, preparation, economic and financial planning. These are not a charity basket case in capable people."
"What I discovered is there's one place where they never lie, which is that they are committed to the non-existence of a Jewish state."
"We need one day a Palestinian Arab leader to say, 'Yes, after October 7th, after what we did, after the invasion and massacre, Gaza was in ruins.' But it was good because from that we emerged to be the people that we are today, a people who embrace the sovereign Jewish state rather than devote our resources to ending it."
"Zionism basically says I'm responsible. You know, I could be dealt the worst cards in history, but I'll make something of it. Palestinianism says I'm responsible for nothing. Everyone else is to blame."
Q&A
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