Seen in this light, defeat is not likely to increase the quotient of Diaspora identification with Israel.
Another troubling question is whether the lack of a clear victory over Islamist foes will harm Israel’s alliance with the United States as a whole.
After all, America took little interest in Israel as an ally, as opposed to a charity case, until after Israel won the Six-Day War. So if Israeli leaders were ever to allow their American counterparts to think Israel’s deterrent capability had diminished to the point where it ceased to be a strategic asset (the rhetoric of common values notwithstanding), woe betide the alliance.
All of this is, of course, somewhat theoretical. Israel’s military capabilities are still formidable and its political system, albeit flawed as all democracies are, is still capable of rebounding from the current mess it finds itself in.
That said, Israelis would do well never to put themselves in a position where they would have to find out what the foreign reaction to a real defeat at the hands of its enemies would be.
Should Hizbullah – and its Syrian and Iranian sponsors – ever get their way and inflict a genuine defeat on Israel, the answer to that question won’t matter much, as this would mean the nation’s annihilation.
In that case, increased international sympathy, always available for dead Jews as opposed to live ones, will be of little use.