Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu I’m considering Israeli media said it ordered a full re-occupying of the Gaza Strip, attracting fierce opposition internationally and within Israel.
It marks an amazing escalation Almost 22 months of war In a territory that has already been destroyed Experts say hunger is unfolding. It risks the lives of countless Palestinians and about 20 living hostages, already deepening Israel Stark International Isolation.
It will also face fierce opposition within Israel: hostage families will view it as a virtual death sentence, and many of the security facilities are also reportedly opposed to the free occupation that has moved the troops and further strained them after nearly two years of regional war.
The threat to Gaza under reoccupied could be a negotiation tactic aimed at putting pressure on Hamas after talks via the US, Egypt and Qatar It looked like it was broken last month. Alternatively, it can be intended to reinforce Netanyahu’s support Far-Right Alliance Partner.
His ruling allies have long sought to escalate the war, take over Gaza, relocate much of the population through what is called voluntary immigration, and reestablish the Jewish settlement that was disbanded when Israel retreated in 2005.
It will likely depend on whether they win or not. One person who utilized Israel – President Donald Trump has not weighed yet.
Ground operations in the most densely populated areas
For full control of Gaza, Israel needs to launch ground operations in the last region of its territory It’s not flattened And where most of Gaza’s 2 million Palestinians are seeking evacuation.
That means going to the central city of Deia al-Barah and Mwasi, a so-called humanitarian zone where hundreds of thousands of people live in illegal tent camps along the coast. Such operations would force another wave of mass displacement, as is the case with UN agencies and humanitarian organisations, further disrupting the delivery of aid. Already struggling to avoid hunger.
Israel already controls about 75% of its territory, either declared a buffer zone or placed under evacuation orders. Israel has also sealed the Gaza border, so it is unclear where civilians will go.
It also poses a great risk The remaining 20 or so living peoplepresumably held in tunnels and other secret locations. Hamas is believed to have ordered the guards to kill prisoners if the Israeli forces approached them.
Hamas-led extremists accused 251 hostages on October 7, 2023, igniting the war, killing about 1,200 people, mostly civilians that day. They still hold 50 hostages, and it is believed that less than half of them are alive, and a recent video shows debilitated prisoners pleasing for their lives.
Israeli retaliatory attacks have killed more than 61,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza’s Ministry of Health. Part of Hamas-run government and run by medical professionals, the ministry is considered by the United Nations and other experts as the most reliable source of victims. Israel challenges its sacrifice, but does not offer its own.
International anger and even more isolated
Israel’s wartime actions shocked and urged much of the international community. Closed Western Allies To seek an end to the war and take steps to recognize the Palestinian state.
The International Court of Justice is considering Genocide claimand issued by the International Criminal Court Arrest letters for Netanyahu and his former defense ministerclaiming war crimes and crimes against humanity.
Israel rejected the allegations and accused them of anti-Semitic “bloody honour.” He says that every effort is needed to avoid harm to civilians and condemn Hamas’ death as extremists are deeply entrenched in the populated regions.
Israel says that all hostages will be returned and that Hamas will continue to fight until they are defeated or disarmed. Seen as forced exile.
Hamas says that in exchange for a permanent ceasefire and Israel’s withdrawal, he will release only the remaining hostages. It says he is willing to give up power, but as long as Israel occupys the territory the Palestinians want in their future states, they will not abandon their arms.
Another free occupation
Israel captured Gaza, the West Bank and East Jerusalem in the 1967 Middle East War. After the withdrawal of Israeli forces and settlers in 2005, the United Nations, Palestinians and others continued to consider Gaza as an occupied territories as Israel maintained control of airspace, coastlines, and most of its land borders.
A complete re-occupying of Gaza would pose a long-term challenge that Israel knows well, given its long history of occupying Arab lands, including the potential for a long-term rebellion. Israel’s support for the war appears to be diminished already Netanyahu ended its ceasefire in Marchbecause a soldier was killed in a hit-and-run attack.
As a right of occupation, Israel is expected to maintain order and ensure that the basic needs of the population are met. On the West Bankit is largely outsourced to Palestinian authority, which exercises limited autonomy in population centres.
However, in Gaza, Netanyahu has ruled out the future role of the PA, accusing him of not fully committed to peace, and has not made plans for postwar governance and reconstruction in Gaza.
Long-term impact
Even if Israel succeeds in restraining Hamas, Gaza’s reoccupying could pose a deeper threat to the country.
Israel will have full control of the territory between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River. The Jordan River is home to about 7 million Jews and 7 million Palestinians. Even before the war, major human rights groups said The situation has become apartheidIsrael vehemently denys it.
Unless many Palestinians are expelled – It’s no longer an Israeli far-right fantasy – Israel will face an existential dilemma that is too familiar: to create a Palestinian state on its territory in 1967, preserving Israel as a Jewish and a democratic state, or to rule millions of Palestinians indefinitely, hoping that they will never return to the idea of equal rights of two nations.
Israel will no longer be able to point out Hamas’ rule in Gaza, or the division of factionalism among the Palestinians, as reasons to avoid such calculations. And when Trump takes office, you may find that there are few friends to back it up.
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