'And my friend, the [Palestinian] professor, told him [US official], “My family tree starts in Jerusalem during the seventh century, during the time of Muhammad—so I know something about the Middle East. Let me tell you something about the Middle East. In the Middle East, once you get rid of tyranny, everything shall explode except democracy.” And my friend was right.

'We forgot about mine warfare after the Second World War. This became an issue during the First Gulf War. It is relevant to the Bab-al-Mandab or the to the Persian Gulf. They can also be used offensively, we could close all the harbors of the Houthis, but we didn’t do it.

'In the Shin Bet, you learn that in order to win against your enemy, you have to know everything about them ... If you do not know then you will not win this war because, you don’t know what to ask when you interrogate him.

'Hope is a security asset ... The whole equation of deterrence is that I can take something from you which is very important for you ... But if your enemy does not think that he has anything to lose, it leads to the phenomena of a suicide attack.

'The state of Israel fits the geostrategic definition is an island ... Ninety-eight percent of all our goods come from the sea. So, maintaining the sea lines of communication is essential.

'We would spend days in shelters because Syrians used to shell and bomb our villages, our kibbutzim. So, the concept of a border is something very clear to us. There is a specific geographic line, on one side are the good guys and on the other side are the bad guys. And this is something that is difficult to explain to an American'.
https://irregularwarfare.org/articles/ami-ayalon-iran-gaza-israeli-navy-interview/