A DOT Talks Israel Special Webinar Series in collaboration with the Department of Political Science.
Date : 28th April 2021
Time : 03:00 – 04:00 PM
Registration Link : bit.ly/dottalks2804
Abstract : Resuming from the last webinar on Israeli Palestinian conflict, we shall discuss on Israel and it’s Wars with other states. Israel’s formation on May 14, 1948 was preceded by an Israeli-Palestinian civil war. After Israel became a state on May 15. It was attacked by Egypt, Jordan, Syria, Lebanon, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Yemen. While born in fire, Israel had to face fire in several upcoming wars. While many were imposed on it, in others it was proactive. How did these wars culminate and how did they shape the political destiny of Israel and the region of the middle-east? How was a small country with a small population able to get the better of its rivals in the neighbourhood? We shall see how Israel faced off in 1967 and went ahead with a surprise attack on Egypt. We shall see how the Yom Kippur war of 1973 shaped the way Israel saw its place in the Middle East. While wars have taken place elsewhere as well, for much of the cold war era every war in the Middle East region involved Israel, barring a few. Living in a neighborhood that wasn’t always friendly shaped Israel’s strategic thought and compelled it to move ahead with a Samson doctrine. Apart from these wars there has been the Suez conflict of 1956, War of Attrition (1968-70) and the Lebanon Wars. We shall discuss Israel’s actions and invasions into Lebanon. And look at how the same precipitated the rise of Hezbollah. The two Israel – Lebanon wars have shaped Israel’s modern low intensity warfare and the Dahiya doctrine as elaborated by former IDF chief Gadi Eisenkot. Israel has also destroyed the nuclear Installations in Syria and Iraq and prevented them from going nuclear. The Olympic games and Mole cricket operations were similarly effective, but in limited scope, against Iran. However, Iran has ended up as a latent nuclear power. What has ensured Israel’s relative success? To what extent has Israel been successful? Israel has been known for its intelligence in warfare. We shall look at some of the intelligence successes and failures. Immensely important has been the support of the US at times and at times its absence. We shall discuss the Israeli concept of Territory for peace. The recent Abraham accords are increasingly seen as a change at the end of an era. Today, Egypt, Jordan, are no longer adversaries but Israel retains its caution. UAE has emerged as a friend and Saudi Arabia has changed its historic posture.
About the Speaker : Jyoti Ranjan Pradhan is the Director for Outreach and Initiatives at Young Diplomats, Paris (www.young-diplomats.com). He is a student of International Relations and Security. He holds an MA in Pollical Science, Security and Diplomacy studies from Tel Aviv University, Israel where he was a Tata scholar. His studies focussed on Israel and its security among other things. His thesis was in the field of Security studies. He interned as Research Assistant at the Jerusalem Institute of Security and Strategy working on Israel, Jerusalem, Iran. He has undergone a course on Public Diplomacy from Israel’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and StandWithUs foundation. He has travelled extensively within Israel, Palestine (West Bank), Jordan and participated in field visits to Israel’s borders with Syria, Lebanon, Jordan and the Gaza Perimeter. He can be reached at jrpradhan@yahoo.com and on twitter @warsberg.