Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is reportedly preparing to instruct his war cabinet to authorize a full military occupation of the Gaza Strip, expanding operations into areas previously avoided due to concerns about the safety of Israeli hostages, according to The Times of Israel.
The Jewish News Syndicate (JNS) reported late Monday that a senior official close to Netanyahu stated bluntly: “The die is cast — we are going for a full occupation of the Gaza Strip.”
JNS also reported that Netanyahu has demanded that dissenters either comply or resign, including the Chief of the General Staff of the Israeli army, Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir.
Currently, Israeli forces control roughly 75% of Gaza, and the new directive would clear the remaining areas, including zones believed to harbor some of the estimated 20–50 hostages still held by Hamas.
The Israeli security cabinet is scheduled to meet Aug. 5 to discuss and potentially formalize a full occupation order. Netanyahu’s office has not confirmed the plan publicly, but the momentum suggests a pivotal shift from a war of attrition to direct control.
According to Euronews, the decision seems to follow the proposal of a 32-page academic paper titled “Gaza Security and Recovery Program, How Should The Day After Look Like,” authored by the Israel Defence and Security Forum, a group of over 35,000 Israeli security force reservists and the think tank Jerusalem Centre for Security and Foreign Affairs.
“In order to prepare for the new state of affairs, even though the results of the military operation have not yet been achieved, it is necessary to prepare an orderly plan for the control of the Gaza Strip after the fall of Hamas,” Euronews claims the document states.