Israel’s cabinet has given a green light an audacious plan to retake Gaza, signalling a serious shift in its approach to the war on the Hamas-controlled enclave. Approved on 5 May, the operation aims to seize the entire Strip, hold key territories, and maintain a long-term military presence – a stark departure from the hit-and-retreat tactics of the past.
With a timeline pegged to begin after Donald Trump’s regional visit from 13-16 May, the IDF are mobilising tens of thousands of reservists for what Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu calls an ‘intensive’ campaign. But this high-stakes strategy, driven by the twin goals of crushing Hamas and freeing hostages, is fraught with risks and riddled with contradictions.
According to Netanyahu, the plan’s primary aim is to throttle Hamas into submission. By capturing swathes of Gaza, expanding buffer zones, and blocking Hamas’s access to humanitarian aid distribution, Israel seeks to dismantle the group’s grip on Gaza.
Netanyahu, supported by far-right allies like Bezalel Smotrich and Itamar Ben-Gvir, is intent on destroying Hamas’s military and governing power. This stance creates tension between the coalition government and with the IDF and most of the public, who demand that hostages should be freed first, before Hamas is hammered.
The government hopes this pressure will force Hamas to release the 59 remaining hostages, fewer than 24 of whom are believed alive. Yet IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir has sounded a discordant note, warning that escalation could endanger the very hostages he prioritises rescuing.
The operation hinges on a massive reservist call-up. But will they answer the call? Reservist morale is battered after 18 months of gruelling combat across multiple fronts. Reports indicate attendance rates plunged from around 150 per cent earlier in the war, to as low as about 70 per cent, with many reservists citing economic strain and disillusionment with the government’s Gaza strategy, or the lack of it.
Open letters from air force veterans, Mossad alumni, and elite Unit 8200 reservists have decried the war’s drift, accusing Netanyahu of prioritising political survival over the rescuing of hostages. Disobedience is a real risk, potentially undermining the IDF’s manpower needs, and delighting Israel’s enemies.
The question of who will rule Gaza post-Hamas looms large. Netanyahu’s far-right allies openly call for reoccupation and Jewish resettlement. Yet the IDF, in a major clash with the government, wants no part in long-term governance. The IDF has made it clear to Bibi, that it will not take part in the day-to-day running of Gaza, including the distribution of food.
Israel hopes that the threat alone will push Hamas into a deal
Without a viable Palestinian alternative to Hamas, the plan risks embedding Israel in a hostile quagmire. Critics, including former defence minister Yoav Gallant, argue there’s no clear ‘day after’ strategy, leaving Israel vulnerable to accusations of aimless occupation.
Is this plan viable? For Netanyahu, crushing Hamas is the path to political redemption and coalition stability, with hostages a secondary concern. Zamir’s focus on hostages, however, underscores the operation’s paradox: military pressure may kill those it aims to save. The strategy’s roots lie in Netanyahu’s need to appease hardliners and deflect pressures from an ongoing corruption, but it risks alienating reservists, inflaming global condemnation, and failing to secure either goal.
Israel hopes that the threat alone will push Hamas into a deal and that escalation may be averted. This gamble could reshape the region, or backfire spectacularly.