When the strong cannot achieve their objectives, it is because they have been defeated, and when the weak cannot be defeated and resist, they have won.
When the strong cannot achieve their objectives, it is because they have been defeated, and when the weak cannot be defeated and resist, they have won.
By Sergio Rodríguez Gelfenstein
They say the war in Gaza ended after a ceasefire agreed upon between Hamas, representing all Palestinian organizations, and Israel. If the war ended, it’s valid to ask who won and who lost in a conflict that involved not only Israel and the Palestinians but was actually a war between the West and Palestine. If the West hadn’t been involved, how can we understand the constant supply of arms to the Zionist entity from the United States and Europe? It’s also worth asking why the West gave the Zionist regime all the diplomatic support it could to avoid condemnation at the UN? And we must be fully aware that when the strong cannot achieve their objectives, it is because they have been defeated, and when the weak cannot be defeated and resist, they have won.
Hamas exists, the Palestinian people exist. That’s irrefutable. Just look at the thousands of armed fighters who emerged from the catacombs to celebrate—along with their people—the withdrawal of the Zionist army from Gaza, even if it was only partial. As a precedent, in 2005, Ariel Sharon—the greatest “butcher” in the history of Israel, possibly worse than Netanyahu himself—faced with the impossibility of dominating the Palestinians, was forced to withdraw from Gaza. The so-called Disengagement Plan aimed to eliminate all permanent Israeli civilian presence in the Gaza Strip, as well as to eliminate four settlements in the northern part of the West Bank, “administered” by Israel since the Six-Day War in 1967. After Israel’s partial withdrawal from Gaza, the United States and Europe announced the defeat of Hamas and the achievement of peace in West Asia, so what is happening today is nothing new.
Following its “exit” from Gaza, Israel imposed a total blockade on the territory, arguing that it was necessary to protect Israeli citizens from “terrorism, rocket attacks, and any other hostile activity” and to prevent dual-use goods from entering Gaza. In doing so, Israel violated or failed to fulfill specific obligations under several previous ceasefire agreements. At the time, Hamas did not possess a single rifle, much less missiles or other sophisticated weaponry. The Gazan people resisted with homemade weapons. Twenty years later, Hamas was able to launch up to 20,000 missiles in two years, the last ones the day before the ceasefire agreement was signed. How did they obtain them? How did they get into the territory? Through tunnels? Or do they make them? How, in the midst of a “total blockade,” was that possible?
The new murderers of the Palestinian people, Netanyahu, Biden, and Trump, after destroying all of Gaza, achieved “peace” in two years after more than 68,000 dead and several hundred thousand wounded and missing. If they had achieved their goals, why negotiate? And why reach agreements? The figures above clearly show that it was not a humanitarian sentiment—which they do not possess—that moved them to dialogue.
The West’s actions and the supposed peace achieved are merely an act of self-defense. One day, the world will have to thank the Palestinian people for their sacrifice and martyrdom, which served to awaken the dormant consciences of humanity. The massive mobilizations held around the world in support of Palestine are an expression of the best in human beings, their kindness, their fraternal spirit, and their love of life—all of which has countered the hatred and apology for violence and war exuded by the West, its leaders, and its media.
When Washington, Berlin, Paris, and London, among others, perceived that their own people were rising up against the inhumanity inherent in imperialism, capitalism, and Zionism, they had to act urgently. “When you see your neighbor’s beard on fire, soak your own,” goes the popular saying. The bombing of Qatar, the attacks on the freedom flotillas carrying pacifist citizens of Western countries carrying humanitarian aid to the distressed Gaza, and Netanyahu’s solitude at the UN General Assembly signaled to the West that the Zionist prime minister knew no bounds, and they decided to take matters into their own hands. The flame that was lit in Palestine threatened to set ablaze an aging and prostituted Europe.
Israel is completely discredited; it is the most hated country in the world and has lost a significant portion of the international support it still enjoyed two years ago. Israel won nothing; it was defeated. Had they been winning; they would have continued the genocide until they achieved their stated goal of obliterating Hamas and the Palestinian people.
It must be repeated, “…when the strong cannot achieve their objectives, it is because they have been defeated, and when the weak cannot be defeated and resist, they have won.” The objectives of Israel and the West were to recover their prisoners without negotiation and without exchange for the Palestinian prisoners. Their arrogance, pride, and supremacy led them to believe that their people were not interchangeable with the Palestinians, whom they considered inferior, but they had to do it. They also intended to disarm Hamas. They failed to achieve either, despite Trump’s bravado or threats. They lost!
They had to hand over 2,000 Palestinian prisoners, including 250 resistance leaders. This was the only condition, the only “red line” Hamas put forward; everything else was negotiable, and they achieved it. They won!
Hamas never thought it would liberate Palestine with 1,500 fighters. That remains a task unfinished. Sixty-eight thousand citizens died, hundreds of thousands were wounded, and a large number are missing, but they planted in the world’s consciousness the justness of their struggle and the greatness of their spirit.
Meanwhile, Israel is a hated country. From its inception and even before, Israel has acted as a terrorist entity: from the actions of the Haganah in the 1920s to those in Gaza in 2025, the common thread is the same: the use of terror as part of Zionism, a scavenging European ideology that requires violence to survive.
Today, we must see images of the Palestinian people and the Resistance celebrating their achievements and cheering on the prisoners returning victorious from the Zionist dungeons. This could have been done two years ago; it was what Hamas was demanding: the release of its prisoners. But it wasn’t possible. Biden and Trump, along with Netanyahu, were thirsty for blood, death, and war because they needed to satisfy their thirst for world domination. In that context, the Palestinian people had to pay the price for the cruel and sadistic ambitions of these representatives of the rottenest part of the planet.
On the opposite side of the fence, the Zionists are not celebrating their supposed victory. They were defeated by a people who “live” in a 365-square-kilometer territory, blockaded for 20 years and occupied for 70, without the slightest conditions for human existence. But they are proud, worthy of their past, they love their land, and are willing to do anything to defend it, as they have demonstrated throughout history.
Netanyahu says he changed the face of West Asia by achieving victory. What victory? How is the region today? After announcing the weakening and near-disappearance of Hezbollah following the assassination of its leader Hassan Nasrallah a few days ago, on the first anniversary of his martyrdom, tens of thousands of Lebanese, as well as people from other countries, celebrated the day jubilantly and combatively. At the event, the new Secretary General, Naim Qassem, declared: “We will not abandon the battlefield, nor will we surrender our weapons.”
Wisam Hodroj, 51, who traveled from Iraq to attend the event, said: “What has happened since the last war has only increased our enthusiasm and our strength. Today we have a new cause: we will not give up our weapons, nor will we surrender them.”
For his part, Mohammed Fneish, a senior Hezbollah political official, asserted that his organization “is not a party in the usual sense that, upon losing its leader, it is weakened,” adding: “In a relatively short period, it managed to fill all the positions it lost when its leaders were killed, and the confrontation continued.” Just a few days after this commemoration, 71,000 people gathered for an enthusiastic and martial political rally organized by Hezbollah in Beirut.
Yemen, for its part, despite all the blows it has received, maintains its capacity to attack Israel, as demonstrated by the regular launching of missiles against the Zionist entity and the attack on commercial and military vessels in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, acting in solidarity with Palestine.
Iraq has a million soldiers and a large reserve in the resistance that have not yet been deployed. Iran, likewise, which two years ago lacked the full support of China and Russia, has now signed agreements involving strategic alliances with both countries, which have supplied it with high-tech weapons, breaking the negative regional military balance that had been weighing heavily against it in the past.
Today, Iran possesses an arsenal of new missiles, including some hypersonic ones that have yet to be demonstrated, and others whose combat capabilities are unknown. Among them is the so-called “End of Days” missile, which can fly at Mach 12 and carry 80 warheads, each carrying 70 kg of explosives. These can separate and simultaneously attack different targets. This missile can cover a distance of up to 3,000 km and reach from Tehran to Tel Aviv and anywhere in Israel in less than ten minutes.
Israel has no ability to prevent this, not even with its “famous” Iron Dome, which proved completely ineffective in the last war. If Iran were to attempt this, Israel would be destroyed in hours. Therefore, Netanyahu quickly contacted Russian President Vladimir Putin to request to convey a message to Tehran notifying it that Israel has no intention of repeating its attacks against Iran.
Likewise, a key player like Pakistan, a nuclear-weapons possessor, has given full support to Iran and the Palestinian people’s struggle. Karachi even unexpectedly signed a military cooperation agreement with Saudi Arabia, which was not in the plans of Israel or the West. Yes, there has been a change in the landscape of West Asia, but not to favor Israel, but rather to extend its isolation in preparation for the decisive battle.
Overall, the greatest evidence of Israel’s defeat in the region is manifested precisely by its acceptance of Iran as an ally, rejecting the Western stance that distorts and lies about the Persian power and its true objectives. Equally noteworthy is the radical attitude of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who refused to participate in the show staged by Trump in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, if the Zionist prime minister were present.
This entire situation is an expression of a diplomatic defeat not only for Israel, but especially for the West. Europe was left out; the attitude of Kaja Kallas, High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy of the European Union, begging for a seat at the Sharm el-Sheikh show was pathetic. If there is any merit to diplomacy, it must be attributed to Qatar, Egypt, and Turkey, who were the true architects of this negotiation that allows the Palestinian people a respite… although we don’t know for how long.
In fact, as of this writing, around 20 Palestinians have been killed by Israel since the signing of the ceasefire. We mustn’t trust Israel because it never keeps its promises when it comes to agreements. Remember Commander Ernesto Che Guevara when he said: “Imperialism cannot be trusted, not even a little bit.”