Israel could’ve ended Gaza war, freed captives sooner: Israel ex-negotiator

A former senior Israeli military official has delivered a scathing assessment of the government's handling of the Gaza war, asserting that a deal to secure the release of all hostages could have been achieved significantly earlier. Major General Nitzan Alon, who served as the military’s lead negotiator for the hostage file, argued that the prolonged conflict resulted in unnecessary loss of life for both soldiers and captives. His remarks, delivered at a Washington Institute forum, directly challenge the official narrative maintained by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s administration regarding the necessity of the war's duration.

The Cost of 'Total Victory'

General Alon characterized the government's pursuit of "total victory" as a strategic falsehood that prioritized political optics over the immediate safety of those held in Gaza. Throughout the two-year conflict, the Israeli security cabinet repeatedly rejected comprehensive ceasefire proposals that could have facilitated an earlier exchange of prisoners. Alon emphasized that these missed opportunities did not serve the broader strategic goals of the war, but rather extended the suffering of families and the military personnel on the ground.

I think that we could have gotten to this point much earlier, maybe a year earlier or so, without any major implication on the other strategic goals of the war. We missed it, actually. The war was too long.

The former negotiator’s critique is particularly pointed given the internal political friction within the Israeli government. He has frequently clashed with far-right ministers, including Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, who has claimed credit for the eventual return of hostages despite having consistently voted against the very deals that could have secured their release sooner. Alon’s testimony suggests that the political leadership was more concerned with maintaining a hardline stance than with the pragmatic, albeit difficult, task of diplomatic negotiation.

Diplomatic Failures and Missed Windows

The assertion that the war was unnecessarily prolonged is supported by reports of early diplomatic overtures that were dismissed by Israeli officials. Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani has stated that Doha reached out to Israel on the very first day of the conflict, relaying a Hamas proposal for a limited ceasefire to allow for the release of civilian captives. According to these accounts, the Israeli leadership showed no interest in engaging with the proposal, opting instead for a full-scale military offensive.

Former Israeli diplomat Alan Pinkas echoed these sentiments, describing the delay as a "tragic" missed opportunity. The consensus among several security experts is that the window for a deal was widest in the immediate aftermath of the October 7, 2023, attacks. By choosing to prioritize military pressure over immediate negotiation, the government effectively narrowed the path for a diplomatic resolution, leading to a protracted conflict that lasted until late 2025.

Political Fallout and Future Implications

As Israel approaches a pivotal legislative election, the debate over the hostage negotiations has become a central issue for the electorate. The protest movement that gained momentum throughout the war has consistently demanded that the government prioritize the lives of the captives above all other objectives. General Alon’s public statements have provided significant ammunition to critics of the current administration, who argue that the government’s refusal to compromise has left a permanent scar on the nation.

The military’s own assessment of the war, while highlighting the degradation of Hamas’s capabilities, now faces the uncomfortable reality of the human cost incurred during the delay. With the conflict having concluded, the focus has shifted toward accountability and the lessons learned from the decision-making processes within the security cabinet. For many, the revelation that a deal was possible a year earlier serves as a grim reminder of the human toll of political intransigence in the face of a national crisis.