DefinePK

Abstract

This paper analyzes the shift in Israel's military doctrine from a strategy of deterrence to one of domination and what it portends for Middle Eastern geopolitics. Historically, Israeli security policy was defined by existential threats, focusing on deterrence through strategic alliances and military superiority. But the occupation of Palestinian lands, failure of peace initiatives, and subsequent intrusions into Lebanon, Gaza, and Syria constituted a doctrinal transformation from defense to regional hegemony. The study seeks three goals: one, to investigate how the doctrine of Israel developed from deterrence to domination; two, to examine the geopolitical stakes involved in Israeli aggression today, including its reach into Gulf countries like Qatar; and three, to evaluate how far this change undermines international law and regional stability. The research adopts a descriptive-analytical approach that relies solely on secondary sources, such as scholarly books, peer-reviewed journal articles, and policy briefs. Structural realism acts as the theory lens, describing the way systemic disequilibrium and great-power patronage encourage states to pursue hegemonic goals. The research establishes that Israeli aggression increasingly erodes sovereignty, destabilizes mediation, and aggravates polarization in the Middle East, as demonstrated by the 2025 Doha strike against Hamas leaders. The research concludes that Israel's shift from deterrence to domination is reconstituting regional order by dismantling international norms and hastening instability. It advises countifying collective regional security frameworks, enhancing international accountability mechanisms, and protecting impartial mediators in order to maintain avenues for de-escalation and conflict settlement.