"Al-Aqsa Flood" battle of October 7, 2013, was not merely a security and military breach, described as the largest in the history of the Zionist entity, but rather a psychological and structural earthquake that shook the foundations of the "enemy entity's society." More than two years after the confrontation, the horrifying truths about the extent of the "invisible" destruction inflicted by the battle on both the occupiers and enemy soldiers are beginning to emerge. According to reports from enemy research centers and medical institutions, the psychological trauma has become a "ticking time bomb" threatening to collapse human capital and paralyze the workforce for many years to come.
A shocking report issued by the Israeli enemy's "Natal" Center (an organization specializing in trauma treatment) reveals that the economic cost of psychological disorders resulting from the war will reach approximately 500 billion shekels (about $160 billion) over the next five years. This bill does not relate to direct military spending, but rather to the erosion of productivity, increased rates of illness, violence, and addiction, and the diminished ability of hundreds of thousands to return to the labor market.The report confirms that the largest part of these losses is embodied in the “erosion of human capital,” as many workers in the age group (25-38 years) - which is the backbone of the enemy’s technological and engineering economy - are no longer able to work efficiently, or have abandoned their high-value specializations as a result of complete psychological exhaustion.
The "Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder" Epidemic
Data reported by journalist Mayan Hoffman, citing medical sources within the Israeli entity, indicates that society is facing an unprecedented surge in rates of "post-traumatic stress disorder" (PTSD). It is expected that up to 30% of the population will suffer from severe psychological effects, a rate far exceeding the global average.
It is estimated that more than 600,000 Israelis will suffer from effects that impair their ability to learn or work, with an alarming increase in stress-related heart disease and strokes, as well as a sharp rise in domestic violence, fatal traffic accidents, and the use of tranquilizers and opioids to escape the reality of "constant fear."
Within the military establishment, the term "Gaza Syndrome" has emerged to describe the collapse in morale among the enemy army's soldiers. Israeli analyst Ephraim Ganor asserts that the cries of tens of thousands of psychologically affected soldiers will be more devastating than the sounds of bombardment.
Entity experts attribute this collapse to the nature of the "guerrilla warfare" waged by the Palestinian resistance. Where enemy soldiers face an "invisible enemy" emerging from tunnels and surprising them in the heart of residential areas. This type of warfare has led to:
Official recognition: Thousands of soldiers have been recognized as psychologically disabled, while more than 10,000 soldiers continue to receive regular treatment for severe mental health trauma.
The phenomenon of suicide: 45 suicides have been recorded among enemy soldiers since the start of the war, a number that is causing serious concern within the enemy military authorities.
Psychological refusal to fight: Cases have emerged of soldiers from Nahal Brigade refusing to return to fight in Gaza due to severe psychological trauma, amidst the enemy authorities' confusion in dealing with them, torn between "punishment" and "treatment."
Moral Decline and Horrifying Testimonies
In a documentary series titled "Gaza Syndrome," soldiers from the enemy army gave shocking testimonies. One admitted to "wetting himself at night," while others confirmed their inability to sleep without consuming large quantities of alcohol. Psychologist Ashira Darwish revealed that the enemy soldiers' practice of genocide and the burning of homes in Gaza—despite being carried out according to military protocol—leaves a devastating long-term psychological impact, pointing to a massive "moral decline" accompanied by widespread addiction.
Furthermore, the repercussions of "Al-Aqsa Flood" have placed the enemy authorities in an existential dilemma, leading to a shift in the so-called "social contract" theory. Instead of the "liberal state" that the entity had been promoting, Israeli society is moving towards an extreme "security state" model.
Where religious Zionism has taken root, the Zionist right wing, led by Itamar Ben-Gvir, and the enemy's political authorities exploited the shock to impose religious-national identity as the sole criterion for "citizenship," further widening the gap with the Palestinian landowners in the territories occupied in 1948.
In addition to the collapse of trust, polls conducted by the enemy's Institute for National Security Studies revealed that 63% of Zionist settlers have lost faith in their government, while 51% live in constant fear of a repeat of the events of October 7th on other borders.
In what can be described as conditional loyalty, the enemy authorities began considering laws that would impose "loyalty to the Jewish state" as a condition for obtaining civil rights. This reinforces the system of racial segregation, or apartheid, and makes security the supreme value that justifies the suppression of freedoms and the marginalization of dissidents.
Unhealed wound in the heart of the entity
The report of “Natal” Center, the testimonies of soldiers, and the studies of experts all point to one fact: that “Al-Aqsa Flood” battle was more than a military round that ended with a ceasefire or withdrawal, to the fact that it was a “structural injury” to the Zionist mind and body. The cost of the psychological shock paid by the Israeli enemy will continue to burden its economy and social fabric for decades, which proves that the “deterrence” that the enemy army tried to build for years has been shattered under the feet of the Palestinian resistance fighters, to be replaced by a “silent epidemic” of fear and existential confusion on the path to the expected demise.
