JNS
The IDF aims to dismantle Hamas’s last stronghold.
As the Israel Defense Forces calls up 60,000 reservists and begins operations on the outskirts of Gaza City, the military is in the final stages of a major force buildup for the next phase of the war against Hamas.
An IDF spokesperson has described the coming phase as a gradual and precise ground operation to dismantle Hamas’s last remaining military and governing stronghold.
The operation is being conducted in parallel with a large-scale humanitarian effort to facilitate the evacuation of the remaining civilian population in Gaza City, a process that Hamas is brutally attempting to block in order to use residents as human shields, Israeli military sources have stated.
The military buildup comes as Hamas, seeking to abort the operation, claimed to make an offer for a “comprehensive deal,” though it continues to demand the IDF's withdrawal from the Strip.
Defense Minister Israel Katz dismissed the alleged offer as empty words, stating that Hamas will “soon have to choose between two options: Accepting Israel's conditions for ending the war, led by the release of all hostages and Hamas disarming, or Gaza [City] will turn into a twin of Rafah and Beit Hanoun,” areas in which the IDF has dismantled most of Hamas's capabilities.
On Thursday, IDF International Spokesperson Lt. Col. Nadav Shoshani outlined the framework for the coming operation, telling reporters that “in recent days, we have begun the recruitment of those 60,000 reservists. They have started reporting for duty, and the IDF right now is in the midst of a force buildup process for this operation.
“Our troops are already operating, as we are speaking, in Zeitoun and Shejaiya, on the outskirts of Gaza City. Warnings to civilian populations have already been issued. This is a gradual, carefully planned operation against Hamas terrorists.”
Shoshani explained that Gaza City remains a critical center of gravity for the terror group.
“Gaza City, for years and throughout this war, has been a focal point for Hamas. There are places within Gaza City, some of the only places in the Gaza Strip, where we haven't operated at all,” he stated. “There are many Hamas terrorists in Gaza City now, using it as an operational center and as a point for regrouping. Some have stayed in Gaza City from the beginning of the war and some have moved back during the latest ceasefire with the aim of rebuilding and rearming, and posing threats against IDF troops and Israeli civilians, as they have said publicly many times.”
Shoshani noted that Gaza City still houses Hamas’s operational and governing capabilities. It is home to the most substantial strategic tunnel network left in the Strip.
The mission remains unchanged
The mission, he reiterated, remains unchanged: “To bring our hostages home, every single one of them, and to defeat Hamas, to dismantle its governing and military capabilities. To make sure they can never conduct another October 7.”
He added, “Obviously, if our troops weren't in Gaza, they [Hamas's weapons] would be pointed toward our civilians, RPGs, IEDs and so on.”
A central component of the plan is a massive, parallel humanitarian operation to protect civilians. Tens of thousands of Gazans have already moved south, and the IDF and its international partners are working to ensure the necessary infrastructure is in place for them, Shoshani said.
“Our humanitarian efforts go hand in hand with our operational efforts,” he said. He detailed a recent “surge in humanitarian aid,” with a daily average of around 300 trucks entering Gaza, which he described as “well over the amount that is needed.”
The effort includes establishing two new food distribution centers in southern Gaza, bringing the total to five; repairing power lines to desalination facilities, including one to a major desalination facility that can provide water for almost a million people; and bringing in tens of thousands of additional tents for shelter.
Hamas is actively working to thwart these efforts, Shoshani said. “Hamas will be attempting, and already is attempting, to block Gazans from moving south from Gaza City. They're stopping them on the streets, they're threatening them. They want to use them as a human shield.”
While preparing for the Gaza City operation, the IDF remains active on other fronts. Shoshani referenced the recent Israeli strike on a security meeting of the Houthi leadership in Yemen, over 1,500 kilometers (930 miles) from Israel, which he called “one of the most complex operations in our history.”
As the IDF has been conducting operations on the outskirts of Gaza City, destroying terror infrastructure in neighborhoods such as Sheikh Radwan, Hamas has escalated its efforts to control the civilian population through terror and propaganda.
The terrorist group released a video showing its members brutally beating merchants in Khan Yunis for refusing to deal in cash, a clear attempt to reassert its authority.
