Israel’s military is moving forward on plans to take over Gaza City, officials said on Wednesday, even as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu weighs a Hamas ceasefire proposal that would anger hardliners in his government but, potentially, ensure the safe release of some hostages.
Troops had reached the city’s outskirts and tents were being moved into southern Gaza for people who would be displaced from their homes once the operation begins, an Israeli military official who requested anonymity in line with military protocol said at a briefing for journalists.
On Wednesday, defence minister Israel Katz said separately that he had approved mobilising more reservists and extending orders for others for the fighting in Gaza. “I instruct you to use all tools and all power to strike the enemy until it is subdued, and to protect IDF soldiers,” Katz told Israeli troops, referring to the Israel Defence Forces, according to a statement from his ministry.
The new assault aims to prevent Hamas from regrouping and planning future attacks, the Israeli military official said at the briefing. That comes after nearly two years of Israel’s war against Hamas, which has largely leveled the Gaza Strip and brought parts of it to the brink of famine.
The official said that an additional 50,000 reservists — bringing the total to 120,000 — would be told to report for duty in September to replace other soldiers who would be going into Gaza City. Reservists who are already on duty could see their missions extended, the official said.
The Israeli military said in a later statement that 60,000 new reservists would be called to duty and 20,000 reservists would have their orders extended.
The Israeli official at the briefing described the military operation as “gradual, precise and targeted”, saying it would extend into areas of Gaza City where Israeli soldiers have not previously been during the war. The city and its surrounding neighbourhoods remain a main stronghold for Hamas fighters and the militants’ government, the official said.
But a 60-day ceasefire plan, put forward earlier this week and approved by Hamas, could pause the operation.
Netanyahu is under increasing pressure from his hard-Right political allies to reject the proposal, which has been called a “partial deal” because it would neither immediately release all the Israeli hostages nor end the war.
(New York Times News Service)