In war, not only life is killed, says Boston University professor Isaac Asimov. After 100 days of war with Hamas, Israel is facing challenges that affect all aspects of a state's security. At a time when world politics is increasing the pressure against Palestinian civilian casualties in attempts for a stable and long-term ceasefire, internal divisions, economic crisis, soldiers' concern about promises to return to their families in the face of the government's insistence Tel Aviv's fear of a long war, as well as the uncertain future of Gaza's governance, are only part of the effects of the conflict. 

     In an analysis published in the largest Israeli newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth, none of the three objectives listed by the Netanyahu government in October 2023 have been realized. Although the army managed to enter regions such as Jabalia or Khan Yunis, where it had not even penetrated before 2005 when Israel left Gaza, according to the Israeli army only 15% of Hamas assets have been destroyed. Its leaders have not been eliminated. Jahya Al-Sinwar, Marwan Issa and Muhammad Daif remain free. The dissolution of Hamas has not been achieved. Apart from prisoner exchanges by both sides, the Israeli army has not been able to release any hostages. 129 Israeli hostages continue to remain in the hands of the Palestinian resistance. The statements of the Israeli chief of staff Herzi Halevy "there is no magic solution for this war" cannot explain the complexity of the situation which has severely damaged the image of the army, nor the anger of the public opinion in Israel. 

     A prisoner of war is someone who tries to kill you and then asks you not to kill him, says Winston Churchill. Contrary to the official statements of the government, Yedioth Ahronoth reports over 12,500 thousand soldiers seriously injured in the limbs from October 7, 2023 who are unable to work. While the number of requests for invalid status that require support from the state is expected to reach 20,000. Despite the question marks about the number of soldiers killed, the destruction of about 900 tanks and armoured vehicles of the Israeli army, warns of quite high numbers of losses which the Israeli political and civic opinion cannot get through easily. The Washington Post estimates that the losses in Gaza will be very heavy. The American daily refers to the data of the Palestinian Ministry of Health for 23 thousand killed and about 60 thousand injured Palestinian civilians to date. 

    Wars are not paid when they happen, their bill comes later, says Benjamin Franklin. The financial aspect of the war is another challenge. The cost of the war so far is 60 billion dollars. The Israeli army spends 272 million dollars a day. Total reservist payments since the start of the war total $2.5 billion. Civilian compensation reaches tens of billions, while business will be compensated with 2.7 billion for these three months. But the biggest damages are in the "Kibbutzet" around Gaza, which are estimated at 5.5 billion dollars. In the north, due to Hizbullah's bombings, financial damages amount to 1.6 billion dollars. While the number of evacuated residents is about 200,000 and care for them costs billions, the state budget foresees a deficit of 30 billion dollars, which will require budget cuts and tax increases of up to 18 billion dollars affecting the quality of life and the reduction of services to the Israeli public. In addition, according to the economic newspaper Calcalist of Tel Aviv, economic losses could reach 50 billion if the war continues for another 5-19 months. In Gaza, half of the buildings and 2/3 of the houses have been damaged or completely destroyed. The entire infrastructure, the health system, the school system, etc., have almost been completely destroyed. 1.8 million people are displaced in southern Gaza and face basic life shortages. The financial cost cannot yet be calculated, but according to DW it is thought to exceed 50 billion euros, a bill which the Gulf countries have refused to cover without a final solution with two states and a Palestinian governing authority in Gaza.

     The undermining of the peace process during these decades brings to mind Thomas Mann's statement "war is the man's escape from solving the problems of peace". While the conflict continues, apparently it is not the number of victims that will determine the winner. The numbers of the war are terrifying, but the biggest dilemma remains what comes next. Daniel Levy, member of the Israeli negotiating delegation in the Taba Agreement with the Palestinians when Ehud Barak was prime minister, also a member of the Oslo II negotiations with Yitzhak Rabin, in his analysis titled "Israel is losing the war" in "The Nation" magazine, joins a growing number of strategic analysts in warning that Israel, despite catastrophic violence, may lose this war. As an analogy of the political logic that draws the contours of a rebel attack, Levy places the aggression of Hamas on October 7 in retrospect with the case of the "Tet" offensive of the Vietnamese rebels in 1968 which captured 100 positions and the command center of American forces. Although the Vietnamese lost the battle and sacrificed much of their political and military infrastructure, the Tet offensive was a defining moment in the US withdrawal from Vietnam. 

    Levy's prognosis conforms to the basic axiom of guerrilla warfare that Kissinger cites, guerrillas win if they don't lose, while traditional armies lose if they don't win. The fact that by provoking Israel until it launched its attack, Hamas may have achieved many of its political goals, is an indisputable reality. It is now the sole negotiating authority not only in Gaza but also in the West Bank. Referring to polls, 80% of Palestinians consider the Palestinian Authority corrupt, while 60% of respondents consider it a tool in the hands of Israel and undermining the aspirations of the Palestinian state. 

   Israel's tense relations with the UN, the termination of diplomatic relations with some Latin American and African countries, the calls of Macron and Canadian Prime Minister Truedeau "if Israel does not stop the bombing of civilians, it risks losing the support of some Western countries", are calculations untold political losses. The underestimation of the summits of the Arab League or the OBI has weakened the possibility of regional alliances in function of the ceasefire and sitting at the negotiating table. The activation of military groups in Iraq, Yemen or Syria, as well as the increase in the intensity of clashes with Hezbollah, do not favour the objectives of the Netanyahu cabinet. The neglect of Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Turkey and Iran to resolve the conflict could lead to the rejection of a regional consensus for negotiated solutions outside of them, which would further inflame the tension in the Middle East. In this foretold routine, Israel and Hamas are redefining the terms of their political competition by referring not to the situation that existed before October 7, but to that which existed before 1948. It is not clear what will come next, but there will be no return to the situation that the parties were in until October 7.