At the heart of one of Israel’s ongoing political controversies is the cabinet’s decision to dismiss the head of Shin Bet, Ronen Bar. Benjamin Netanyahu and his supporters claim that Bar has sought to undermine the prime minister to deflect from his own failure to prevent the October 7 attacks, while Bar claims that the government has no right to fire him while he is investigating wrongdoing by the prime minister and his staff.

In other words, both sides object to the Shin Bet’s entanglement in political questions. But Israel’s internal security and counterterrorism agency has a long history of politicization—and of attempts to keep it out of politics. Amichai Cohen delves into that history, and the laws governing the Shin Bet, in conversation with Dan Senor. (Video, 56 minutes. Audio available on podcast platforms.)

With the IDF engaged in ground maneuvers in both northern and southern Gaza, and a plan about to go into effect next week that would separate more than 100,000 civilians from Hamas’s control, an end to the war may at last be in sight. Yet there seems to be no agreement within Israel, or without, about what should become of the territory. Efraim Inbar assesses the various proposals, from Donald Trump’s plan to remove the population entirely, to the Israeli far-right’s desire to settle the Strip with Jews, to the internationally supported proposal to place Gaza under the control of the Palestinian Authority (PA)—and exposes the fatal flaws of each. He therefore tries to reframe the problem:

[M]any Arab states have failed to establish a monopoly on the use of force within their borders. Syria, Lebanon, Iraq, Yemen, Libya, and Sudan all suffer from civil wars or armed militias that do not obey the central government.

Perhaps Israel needs to get used to the idea that in the absence of an entity willing to take Gaza under its wing, chaos will prevail there. This is less terrible than people may think. Chaos would allow Israel to establish buffer zones along the Gaza border without interference. Any entity controlling Gaza would oppose such measures and would resist necessary Israeli measures to reduce terrorism. Chaos may also encourage emigration.

Israel is doomed to live with bad neighbors for the foreseeable future. There is no way to ensure zero terrorism. Israel should avoid adopting a policy of containment and should constantly “mow the grass” to minimize the chances of a major threat emerging across the border. Periodic conflicts may be necessary. If the Jews want a state in their homeland, they need to internalize that Israel will have to live by the sword for many more years.