Lessons unlearned: How Israel’s Gaza war mirrors US military failures

Do you recall the US military strategies in Vietnam or the post-9/11 "War on Terror"? In both cases, American presidents claimed to target specific enemies, yet they struggled to distinguish combatants from the civilian population. 

Today, Israel appears to be following a disturbingly familiar pattern in Gaza.

Former President Joe Biden openly questioned the Gaza Health Ministry's death toll, stating, "I have no notion that the Palestinians are telling the truth about how many people are killed." Throughout the conflict, Biden framed Israel's military operations as "self-defense," consistently affirming, "We stand with Israel," even amid rising civilian casualties and the destruction of Gaza's infrastructure.

In a stark contrast, hypothetical remarks attributed to Donald Trump in February 2025 suggested the US  should "take over" Gaza, transforming it into the "Riviera of the Middle East," implying the forced relocation of its 2 million residents. This highlights the extreme strategies considered amid the war.

Notably, months into the assault, Israel's objective of eradicating Hamas remained elusive, with perhaps half its fighters remaining amid the ruins and a massive civilian death toll. This outcome echoes critiques of US military conduct in Fallujah and Kandahar, where counterterrorism missions left devastated communities and unresolved conflicts.

American columnist Harold Meyerson observed that Israel's campaign mirrors the US  approach in Vietnam. Both nations asserted they were targeting distinct enemies but failed to separate combatants from non-combatants. In Vietnam, labeling entire villages "free-fire zones" resulted in up to 4 million deaths, mostly civilians.

Israel's tactics have similarly caused massive civilian casualties without clear strategic gains. The lesson from Vietnam was stark: indiscriminate firepower doesn't defeat insurgencies. The Viet Cong and North Vietnamese ultimately prevailed in 1975, despite US  military superiority. Observers warn Israel might be repeating this strategic error in Gaza.

The parallels extend to the "War on Terror." Israel's justification of "counter-terrorism" echoes US  rhetoric in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Syria. Human Rights Watch urged Israel to learn from America's counterterrorism failures, where civilian casualties eroded trust and fueled militant recruitment. 

Heavy-handed military operations, particularly massive airstrikes in densely populated areas like Mosul (2016–2017) and Raqqa (2017), displaced tens of thousands and deepened regional instability.

During the battle for Mosul, US and Iraqi forces bombarded the city, destroying critical infrastructure and thousands of homes. In Raqqa, despite claims of precision, about 80% of the city was rendered uninhabitable. These campaigns devastated cities and killed countless civilians. As Gen. Stanley McChrystal warned, "For every civilian killed, many more insurgents were created."

Israel's assault on Gaza resembles these failed strategies. Historian Van Gosse describes it as a "scorched-earth strategy to eradicate invisible enemy fighters by destroying everything around them." 

Similar to US commanders in Vietnam prioritising troop safety over civilian lives, Israeli leaders have relied on overwhelming firepower, causing mass civilian deaths. Gosse calls this "a coward's way of war, and also essentially criminal" under international law.

Critics argue this goes beyond warfare, potentially constituting genocide. In both US  and Israeli contexts, "counterterrorism" has served as political cover for actions amounting to collective punishment, including carpet bombing, siege warfare, and displacement.

Israel contends its operations target only Hamas, responsible for the October 7, 2023, attack, arguing Hamas embeds within civilian areas, making urban strikes unavoidable. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) insist they follow international law and take precautions to mitigate civilian harm. However, the reality on the ground presents a devastating picture.

In the initial weeks (October–November 2023), Israeli forces killed tens of thousands and destroyed vast swathes of Gaza's infrastructure—homes, schools, hospitals. By January 18, 2024, at least 24,620 Palestinians were reported killed and over 61,000 injured, with UN data and Gaza's health ministry indicating about 70% were women and children.

By comparison, Israel claimed roughly 5,000 Hamas fighters killed. The death toll continued climbing, reaching 43,300 Palestinians killed 13 months into the war, again with women and children comprising roughly 70% of the victims. Michael Lynk, former UN Special Rapporteur, noted this as the highest rate of Palestinian civilian deaths in such a short period this century.

The destruction encompassed homes, markets, mosques, and critical infrastructure. Hospitals became battlegrounds; by mid-December 2023, over two-thirds of northern Gaza's hospitals were non-functional due to attacks. Israeli officials' statements revealed a strategy of widespread devastation.

Defense Minister Yoav Gallant declared he had "released all the restraints," vowing, "Gaza will never return to what it was." An IDF spokesman stated the focus was "on what causes maximum damage." This contradicts claims of surgical strikes.

This approach—justifying massive force as anti-terrorism while effectively targeting an entire population—draws parallels to US  "collective punishment" tactics in Vietnam, where success was measured by body counts, blurring civilian and enemy deaths. Observers accuse Israel of treating Gaza's densely populated areas as targets, despite evacuation orders leading civilians to areas lacking safe refuge. 

Notably, months into the assault, Israel's objective of eradicating Hamas remained elusive, with perhaps half its fighters remaining amid the ruins and a massive civilian death toll. This outcome echoes critiques of US  military conduct in Fallujah and Kandahar, where counterterrorism missions left devastated communities and unresolved conflicts.

Israel's actions have sparked widespread international condemnation from civil society, human rights groups, UN officials, and some allies. UN officials repeatedly cited "clear violations of international humanitarian law." In a landmark ruling in late 2023, following a case by Namibia and South Africa, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) found it "plausible" that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza and ordered preventive measures.

By December 2024, Amnesty International concluded in a comprehensive report that "Israel is committing genocide against Palestinians in Gaza." Secretary General Agnès Callamard stated Israel treated Palestinians as "a subhuman group unworthy of human rights and dignity," declaring, "this is genocide.

It must stop now." The 296-page report detailed "genocidal acts," including mass civilian killings and deliberate denial of essential resources. Human Rights Watch and Médecins Sans Frontières also condemned indiscriminate bombardment, hospital attacks, and the staggering child death toll as blatant violations of international law.

Public opinion shifted globally, with mass protests demanding a ceasefire. UN Secretary-General António Guterres called Gaza's situation "apocalyptic" and a "crisis of humanity." Red Cross President Mirjana Spoljaric Egger lamented after visiting, "There's no safe space... I haven't passed one street where I didn't see destruction of civilian infrastructure, including hospitals."

In the US, dissent took an extreme form in February 2024 when 25-year-old Air Force serviceman Aaron Bushnell self-immolated outside the Israeli Embassy in Washington, D.C. Live-streaming the act, he declared he would "no longer be complicit in genocide," referencing Palestinians in Gaza, and reportedly shouted "Free Palestine!" before succumbing to his injuries. This unprecedented protest by a US  military member became a symbol of dissent against US  complicity.

Despite global outcry, meaningful intervention remained limited. The US  provided unwavering political and military support, emphasising Israel's right to self-defence. While President Biden privately criticised Israeli leaders and later admitted the campaign was "over the top" and "indiscriminate," his administration opposed ceasefire calls early on and vetoed UN resolutions critical of Israel. 

Billions in arms transfers, including munitions used in Gaza, continued. This stance intensified debates about moral responsibility and international law.

Critics, including former US  officials like Senator Patrick Leahy, argued continued aid violated US  laws like the Leahy Act, prohibiting aid to units committing gross human rights abuses. State Department officials Josh Paul and Annelle Sheline resigned, accusing the administration of ignoring Israel's violations.

Human Rights Watch noted the US criticises other governments for similar conduct but remains largely silent or deflective regarding Israel, providing a virtual "blank check."

While framed by some along religious lines, this is fundamentally a human rights crisis. Muslim-majority countries widely condemned Israel's assault, with the OIC and Arab League calling for ceasefires. However, concrete actions were scarce. Nations normalising relations under the Abraham Accords (UAE, Bahrain, Morocco) did not sever ties. Saudi Arabia paused normalisation plans but kept future relations open.

Egypt and Jordan condemned Israeli actions but avoided confrontation. Turkey's President Erdoğan used strong rhetoric, including accusations of genocide, but stopped short of significant sanctions. 

Iran-backed groups like Hezbollah engaged in limited clashes, constrained by fears of escalation. This global inaction highlighted a gap between condemnation and intervention.

On 01 April 2024, Israeli airstrikes killed seven World Central Kitchen (WCK) aid workers in southern Gaza. Their clearly marked convoy, delivering food along a route pre-coordinated with the IDF, was hit multiple times by drones. The seven workers—from Palestine, Canada, Australia, the UK, and Poland—were killed. 

The massacre sparked global outrage, illustrating the perceived impunity where even known humanitarian groups under military clearance were unsafe.

This tragedy adds to evidence compiled by researchers, journalists, think tanks, human rights groups, and UN agencies suggesting Israel's war mirrors dark aspects of past US-led conflicts in rhetoric and outcome. Both framed as "counterterrorism," they resulted in widespread civilian suffering.

Despite alarms, accusations of war crimes, and genocide, meaningful intervention by powerful states has been absent, constrained by politics and double standards. Gaza faces a severe humanitarian catastrophe, largely witnessed in silence by the international community.

This tragic parallel to Vietnam is haunting: it was ultimately mass public pressure and moral reckoning, not swift action by international institutions, that helped end that war.

The question now is whether the world will finally respond to this "wake-up call," ensuring that the laws of war and principles of humanity are upheld—not just for Palestine, but for all people.

Shrabony Rahman is an international relations graduate currently working with an INGO.

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions and views of The Business Standard.