IDF preparing for Gaza City invasion – report

Israel’s top brass increasingly believes that a new large-scale ground operation in Gaza is inevitable, amid intel suggesting Hamas is rebuilding its military capabilities.

By World Israel News Staff

Israel’s defense establishment is preparing for the possibility of a renewed large-scale ground offensive in the Gaza Strip, including the capture of Gaza City, amid assessments that Hamas is rebuilding its military capabilities and has no intention of disarming on terms acceptable to Israel, according to a report Sunday.

The IDF has already developed plans for an incremental takeover of Gaza City that could involve several divisions operating simultaneously, Walla reported, citing security officials familiar with military preparations.

Israeli officials reportedly believe another ground maneuver may ultimately be unavoidable if diplomatic efforts to demilitarize the enclave fail.

According to the report, Southern Command chief Maj. Gen. Yaniv Asor presented IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir with plans in May for renewed fighting in Gaza City.

Those plans included the gradual capture of the city and preparations to move civilians toward newly established humanitarian areas.

A security official familiar with the proposal described it as “a phased plan” centered on the gradual takeover of Gaza City, where Israel believes much of Hamas’s remaining military leadership and armed security apparatus is concentrated.

The preparations came as US-led diplomatic efforts sought to implement President Donald Trump’s plan for Gaza, which calls for Hamas to surrender its weapons, relinquish control of the territory and allow a new civilian administration to take over.

Trump’s Board of Peace, led on the Gaza file by former United Nations envoy Nickolay Mladenov, has spent months attempting to bridge differences between Israel and Hamas over the sequence and terms of demilitarization, Israeli withdrawal and reconstruction.

In May, Mladenov said Hamas’s disarmament was “not negotiable,” warning that reconstruction and further Israeli withdrawals could not advance while armed groups remained in control.

The original Trump plan calls for Hamas to disarm, an international stabilization force to deploy and a technocratic Palestinian administration to assume responsibility for Gaza.

Those negotiations have continued through the summer. Earlier this month, Trump envoy Jared Kushner took the unusual step of meeting Hamas leader Khalil al-Hayya in Egypt before traveling to Israel for talks with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Hamas has said it accepts a US-backed roadmap but has linked implementation of its disarmament commitments to Israeli compliance with other provisions of the agreement.

Israel, meanwhile, has insisted that its forces will not withdraw further until Hamas’s weapons, tunnels and military infrastructure are dismantled.

Mladenov told the UN Security Council last week that the process had moved “from the negotiating table to the engineering table,” saying Hamas had accepted the central requirement that it disarm and turn Gaza over to civilian rule.

Netanyahu has nevertheless maintained that declarations are insufficient and that Israel will judge the process by whether Hamas actually gives up its military capabilities.

Israeli security officials cited by Walla are reportedly increasingly skeptical that the organization will do so.

According to Walla, Israeli officials concluded earlier in the year that Hamas was attempting to “drag things out” while rebuilding its military wing, restoring infrastructure and maintaining control over the territory.

The assessment prompted Southern Command to continue planning for a return to major ground operations.

Tensions have risen further in recent weeks as Israel resumed targeted strikes against Hamas operatives it says are involved in rebuilding the organization or planning attacks.

Zamir said during an August visit to Gaza that the IDF had “significantly weakened” Hamas but would continue taking action to prevent the group from rebuilding a threat along Israel’s border.

“The IDF will continue to operate proactively,” Zamir said. “We will not allow a threat to emerge on our borders as we experienced on October 7.”

The situation has also been complicated by the recent appearance of kites crossing from Gaza into southern Israel.

Several kites landed near Israeli border communities this month, though the IDF said those examined did not contain explosives or incendiary material.

Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz nevertheless warned that Israel would escalate its response if launches continued, citing concerns about a possible return to incendiary kites and balloons or the eventual use of drones.

Authorities in Gaza subsequently urged parents to prevent children from flying kites, while Hamas denied that the incidents represented terrorist activity.

The renewed Israeli strikes have drawn criticism from Mladenov, who warned last week that continuing military action could undermine efforts to achieve Hamas’ demilitarization.

“Will another strike on a munitions depot stop Hamas from rearming or tightening its grip on Gaza?” he asked the Security Council, answering that it would not.

Israeli officials, however, argue that allowing Hamas to rebuild while negotiations continue would recreate the conditions that enabled the Oct. 7, 2023, attack.

According to Walla, defense officials have warned Israel’s political leadership that Hamas is not only rebuilding capabilities inside Gaza but is also attempting to establish infrastructure for attacks against Israeli targets in Judea and Samaria and abroad.

The IDF has therefore been instructed to maintain preparations for a major operation involving several divisions, should the political echelon decide that the diplomatic track has failed.

Security officials cited in the report assess that any such offensive would likely take place only after Israel’s upcoming election and the US midterm elections.

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