Israel - Hamas War: Making The Complex...Comprehensible

I never intended to become a public voice on matters of war and conflict in the Middle East. For over 37 years, I worked in the hidden rooms and shadows of America's Intelligence Community, analyzing threats, assessing capabilities, and providing insights that informed our nation's most critical defense decisions. My career was defined by reading and writing classified documents and working in secure facilities with no windows. When I wrote or spoke, I knew that my assessments would reach only those with the proper clearances and the need to know. The general public had no need to know what we said.

Then came October 7, 2023.

The night of Hamas's unprecedented attack on Israel, my phone rang. On the other end was a journalist I had connected with months earlier during the Chinese spy balloon incident*. "Can you help our viewers understand what's happening?" he asked. I agreed to a single interview the next morning, which I expected to be a one-time contribution during a moment of worldwide shock and confusion.

That first interview led to another, then another, and eventually more than seventy-five live appearances analyzing the unfolding crisis - that would turn into an all-out war. What began as a chance to provide clarity during a crisis evolved into something I never anticipated: a public chronicle of one of the most complex and devastating wars of our time.

My goal was not to simplify the issues. Rather, it was about making the complex... comprehensible.

What follows is not a definitive history of the Israel-Hamas War. Rather, it is a chronicle of my process to explain and help everyone understand the conflict as it unfolded - based on what trained journalists wanted to explain to their viewers and readers. The book contains both my extemporaneous analysis-preserved as it was given, even when later proven incomplete or incorrect-and reflections informed by hindsight.

This book exists because an unprecedented attack led to an unexpected telephone call, which sparked a journey I never anticipated taking. I invite you to join me in the analytical process-to consider the evidence, weigh alternative explanations, and develop your own informed perspective on one of the most consequential wars of our time.

As you turn these pages, I hope you will discover not just what happened in this brutal war, but also how to think about it-and perhaps other conflicts-with the analytical mindset that has guided my career.