Israel’s Security Cabinet convened Thursday to approve plans for an upcoming Gaza operation focusing on combat in Gaza City, following Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s description of the area and central camps as “Hamas’s last strongholds.”
Preparations are underway, with intelligence reaching the IDF highlighting significant challenges ahead for participating troops. On Friday, Defense Minister Israel Katz said, “We approved the IDF’s plans yesterday to defeat Hamas in Gaza with intense fighting, civilian evacuation and operations.
“Soon, the gates of hell will open on Hamas’s murderers and rapists in Gaza until they accept Israel’s terms to end the war, starting with releasing all hostages and disarming. If they refuse, Gaza City, Hamas’s capital, will become like Rafah and Beit Hanoun.”
IDF intelligence indicates Hamas is rebuilding its terror tunnels, even in areas previously operated in, with Gaza City believed to host large, critical underground networks, some undetected during the first operation 18 months ago.
The operation will echo aspects of Operation Gideon’s Chariots, including new military routes established around Gaza City—likely based on main roads—alongside extensive building demolitions, as seen recently in Rafah and Khan Younis.
In eastern Khan Younis, for instance, the Paratroopers Brigade leveled over 2,000 structures, some three to four stories high, targeting homes linked to terrorists or used for tunnel access.
A senior IDF commander involved in recent Gaza fighting told Ynet, “Buildings allow terrorists to emerge from tunnels and dig new ones under cover. Demolishing them has operational value, not just damaging or disabling them.”
The urban nature of Gaza City, unlike the lower-rise Khan Younis or Beit Hanoun, poses a unique challenge, with many damaged high-rises—10 to 15 stories in western neighborhoods—still standing.
These could shelter Hamas anti-tank teams, snipers and lookouts, or conceal an extensive tunnel network. Leveling such structures will require vast explosives and heavy engineering equipment, some worn from 22 months of war since the October 7, 2023, Hamas massacre.
The ground offensive, likely delayed until September, hinges on evacuating around one million Gazans southward, a complex task relying on UN cooperation. The next phase in the fighting involves IDF Southern Command translating the operational concept into actionable plans, with initial brigades encircling Gaza City from all sides, gradually advancing into its western high-rises.
This will be followed by discussions on the nature of combat, timing, contingencies, logistics, drills and force concentration along the Netzarim Corridor route and border, preceded by airstrikes.
Tens of thousands of reservists have received call-up orders, with some reporting for duty from early September. Lt. Col. (res.) Itamar Harel, an Armor Corps officer from the 10th Brigade, told Ynet’s studio he’s received his fifth order since the war began.
“On one hand, we’ll do everything to bring back the hostages. On the other hand, there’s physical and mental wear, the environment is tiring and family and work circles erode. The same state sending us repeatedly isn’t expanding the ranks—neither from the ultra-Orthodox community nor other groups.”
Harel highlighted frustration from unclear and conflicting messages from lawmakers. “If Katz and Zamir argue in the media, it doesn’t help, and again, it’s unclear how this mission ends the story,” he said.
Active-duty brigades, a year after the last major northern Gaza operation 20 months ago, have been directed to prepare for another ground operation, though they’ll maintain scheduled duties in the coming days without immediate drills. However, weekly schedules may adjust as preparations advance.