Full-Scale Israel Ground War Could Backfire, Retired CIA Official Says

‘Strategically, it doesn’t make sense from a political or military standpoint,’ Darrell Blocker said.
Full-Scale Israel Ground War Could Backfire, Retired CIA Official Says
Israeli army tanks and vehicles deploy along the border with the Gaza Strip in southern Israel on Oct. 13, 2023.Jack Guez/AFP via Getty Images
Dan M. Berger
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A retired high-ranking CIA official doubts that Israel will engage in the full-scale ground invasion of Gaza that has seemed likely since the Hamas terrorist group’s devastating Oct. 7 land, sea, and air assault on the Jewish state.

Darrell Blocker told a crowd of about 100 people at an Atlanta synagogue on Oct. 12 that an invasion doesn’t make strategic sense for Israel. He said Israeli tanks won’t be able to get through or maneuver in Gaza’s crowded streets, now filled with building rubble from the bombing.