The Palestinians occupied the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem in 2002. This was a deliberate effort to distract Israel at the start of Defensive Shield. In 1967 both Moshe Dayan and Golda Meir meant to annex Bethlehem but it didn’t happen, apparently due to some clerical error.

The arguments that Israel is in a stronger position going forward due to a lowered threshold of action seems like wishful thinking. The reality is that with BHO coming to power Israel faces a possibly existential threat. The key threats facing Israel start in Iran and then run through Damascus to Lebanon and Gaza. In addition they are under attack through the assault on diaspora communities and the alliance of media, academic and political figures with their enemies. The key weak points in Iran are in the refined energy storage and transportation systems and power distribution nodes. The weak link in Iran’s proxy strategy is in Damascus. Israel should be planning a 1967 decapitating attack on Damascus that would bring Lebanon back into play. If their intelligence indicates that the Iranian nuclear weapons are approaching reality then will have to strike, probably 30 or more sites. Finally the Mossad should be dispatching teams to defend threatened jewish communities and extract retribution from those who motivated either by anti-Semitism or fear are supporting the forces that killed Theo van Gogh and Danny Pearl.

While I would hate to see a member of the Belmont Club at risk I do regret the loss of an opportunity to eliminate a target rich environment at Doha.