Did Israel get its groove back?

In recent weeks Israel’s apparently carried out two spectacular raids that brings back memories of times passed. Mere Rhetoric observed

And Israel specifically still needs to be able to convince its enemies that not only can it use its tanks and soldiers, but that it’s willing to do so. Since Halutz resigned and Ashkenazi took over, the IDF has moved away from the over-reliance on the IAF that had marked Halutz’s disastrous tenure.The Defense Ministry under Barak is trying to take care of the second part, which involves restoring Israel’s deterrent. Barak has ordered the IDF to undertake riskier missions, from dropping troops a mile inside Gaza for Hollywood style special forces operations to ordering the IAF to conduct airstrikes in Syria that are nothing short of humiliating (article is subscription-only, but if you search for it on Google News you can get the full article behind the Google-subscription link)

Given that PM Ehud Olmert seems risk averse, these operations are likely the idea of new Defense Minister Ehud Barak (as Mere Rhetoric notes). Realizing that failure to act will only hurt him politically, Olmert accedes to these ideas, even if he is strengthening a future rival.

Ehud Barak is well known as a former commando. In his most famous (alleged) mission he led the assassination of Khalil al-Wazir (Abu Jihad), Arafat’s #2 at the time, in Tunis.

Current chief of staff, Gabi Ashkenazi is credited with participating in one of Israel’s most daring military strikes: the operation to rescue the hijacked passengers at Entebbe in 1976.

And Israel’s chief of military intelligence is Gen. Amos Yadlin who might be the third most famous member (after the late Ilan Ramon and Yifrach Spector) of the group of pilots who destroyed the Osirak reactor in Iraq in 1981.

With three men of action in charge of the military now, perhaps the two attacks that have recently made the news are harbingers of future actions.

I don’t pretend to be happy with the political situation when any military gains are likely to be wasted by political and diplomatic maneuvering. But at least its possible that Israel will start striking fear into the hearts of its enemies again.

UPDATE: The Hashmonean asks

Who turned off the music in the first place?

and expresses his skepticism that things have changed. He wishes that Israel’s leaders would keep hitting real targets instead of boasting about the ones they already did.Crossposted at Soccer Dad.