Israel has endorsed a sweeping new military strategy to conquer the entirety of the Gaza Strip and maintain long-term military forces there, according to two Israeli officials who spoke on the condition of anonymity. The plan marks a significant escalation of Israel’s decades-long conflict with Hamas and could further intensify international outrage over its Gaza actions.
The action was approved by the cabinet in a vote early Monday, just hours after the military announced it was calling up tens of thousands of reservists. The entire Gaza Strip would be in the hands of the Israeli military, widening its war against Hamas and attempting to sever humanitarian support for the militant organization.
Escalation in Gaza and Deepening Humanitarian Concerns
With the fragile ceasefire breaking down in mid-March, Israel has resumed intensive attacks across Gaza, taking over roughly 50% of the strip so far. The clashes have resulted in dozens of fatalities and mass evacuations. More than 90% of all Gazans have already been displaced from their homes, many more than once.
The new policy demands deeper southward invasion south of Gaza, a step relief agencies warn can transform an already bad enough humanitarian crisis into something even worse. All humanitarian essentials—food, water, and fuel—have been cut off by Israel since the cease-fire breakdown, precipitating what most analysts label the worst crisis in nearly 19 months of conflict. Long-standing shortages have resulted in extensive famine and looting.
Strategies to Overcome Aid and International Resistance
Israel’s government explains that the purpose of the plan is to ensure that Hamas is not in a position to supply humanitarian aid, which it claims enables the group to preserve its stranglehold and construct facilities. Israel has presented a controversial new model for aid distribution in a memo delivered to The Associated Press. Money would be funneled into warehouses of private security companies, where big crowds would be filtered through facial recognition and text messaging, the proposal states.
The scheme has been criticized by aid agencies and the UN, saying it would constitute forced displacement and an ignoring of humanitarian principles. The UN has refused to be involved in the scheme in its present form, saying there is a risk of denying the most vulnerable their ability to access basic essentials.
“A proposal that appears to monopolize life-sustaining commodities as a means of coercion—under the guise of an army doctrine,” the UN said in a statement.
The proposal has been backed by the US government, reports say, but among those questions left unanswered is who would fund the private security missions.
Hostage Families React, Hamas Negotiations Collapse
The second controversial element of the plan is what it might do to the other 59 approximate hostages in Gaza. The Hostage Families Forum, a lobby of the families of the Hamas hostages kidnapped during the October 2023 attack, condemned the new military plan. It urged Israel to try first to secure a ceasefire and safe release of the hostages, saying the plan endangered their lives further.
Einav Zangauker, whose son Matan is still a hostage, called publicly in a Knesset committee meeting for Israeli reservists to refuse to serve “on moral and ethical grounds.”
No Deal is Made So Far
In spite of mounting foreign pressure to negotiate a new ceasefire, there is no deal in sight yet. Israel threatens not to stop the war unless Hamas is defeated, yet Hamas wants a deal for normalization of relations.
There have been constant Israeli bombardments in Gaza, with late night bombardments in the north leaving at least 17 dead, hospital officials confirmed. Beit Hanoun, Beit Lahiya, and Gaza City were targeted. Eight children and women are among those killed, hospital officials at Shifa Medical Center said.
The fighting began after Hamas-backed fighters staged a surprise incursion into south Israel and killed around 1,200 people and kidnapped about 250. Israel’s military response has since killed over 52,000 people in Gaza, according to the territory’s health ministry, distinguishing between civilian and militant dead in their tallies.
Background and Outlook
Israel’s capture of Gaza was in the 1967 Middle East war and disengaged in 2005. Hamas later occupied the territory in 2007 and governed until now. While Israel insists that its present operation is to oust Hamas and release hostages, its critics say the prolonged task risks transforming Gaza into a long-term humanitarian disaster.
With Israel poised to unveil its latest war doctrine, its international condemnation is certain to intensify—particularly as aid workers, allies, and citizens are increasingly unable to swallow the mounting cost of war.
