With its harsh and unblinking assessment of the performance of Israel's leaders in last summer's war in Lebanon, the Winograd Commission has jarred both Israel's citizens and its American-Jewish supporters. Myths die hard, probably harder here than in Israel: There, Prime Minister Ehud Olmert's standing had dipped into the single digits well ahead of the release of the commission's report, among a polity that suspected he lacked the judgment and expertise to prosecute the war.

Hizbullah is already hailing the report as proof that they won the war, calling it a "divine victory." But Israel's painful exercise in self-scrutiny should not be read as a sign of weakness. The day any of its neighbors engages in a similar exercise will be the real victory, of democratic values over despotic delusions.

Many of Israel's usual critics will also be tempted to cite the report as proof of Israel's "overreaction," of its military dominance of the region, of its martial belligerence. But a poorly executed war does not disprove the case for war. Israel remains in the crosshairs of terrorist groups on two fronts. And while a purported cease-fire appears to be in effect between Israel and Palestinians in Gaza, a buildup of militant forces by Hamas means Israel cannot afford to drop its guard, even for a moment. Hamas, inspired by Hizbullah, is smuggling arms into Gaza and imagines it too will emerge victorious from a devastating skirmish with the IDF.

Many Israeli analysts feel there is time to redraw this collision course, providing that third-party players like the Saudis can work a combination of promises and threats to divert Hamas from its goals. At the moment, Israel is hobbled diplomatically and politically. The Winograd report is an opportunity, perhaps, for Israelis to demand the kind of leadership that can excel on both fronts – containing the Hamas threat on the battlefield and seeking new opportunities across the negotiating table. This is Israel's opportunity, to snatch divine victory from an admission of defeat.