The list of critics includes notable figures such as Moshe Ya’alon, Dan Halutz, Dani Yatom, Ami Ayalon, Amos Malka, and Uzi Dayan, along with former Shin Bet head Nadav Argaman and former police commissioner Shlomo Aharonishki. They argue that the war, now in its second year, has failed to achieve its objectives and has severely damaged Israel’s international image. One of them said, “What the world sees is our own fabrication… we are hiding behind lies we invented.”

They stressed that early military gains were erased due to the absence of a coherent political vision, and that the Israeli army is now trapped in complex guerrilla-like warfare with no clear end. A growing number of soldiers have been killed or injured, and the country’s home front continues to suffer.

Calls For Political Change As Military Goals Collapse

Former southern command leader Yitzhak Brik criticized the military for failing to deliver on promises made to Netanyahu—including defeating Hamas, freeing hostages, and occupying Gaza. Brik said over 60 Israeli soldiers have died since those promises were made, and none of the goals have been met. He called the government’s strategy a “blind attachment to illusion,” denouncing Netanyahu and his far-right ministers for prioritizing settlement expansion over national interest.

Former planning division chief Nimrod Sheffer voiced alarm over the government’s rhetoric, saying ministers are openly promoting starvation, destruction, and displacement in Gaza. “There is famine, possibly severe famine in Gaza, and Israel is responsible as the de facto sovereign,” he said.

Channel 12 political analyst Amnon Abramovich concluded that the war’s legitimacy has long since collapsed. “The hostages are not the government’s priority,” he stated. “If the war hadn’t become a political tool, the situation would be completely different.”