The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) announced its intention to launch a large-scale operation in the Gaza Strip with the aim of taking control of 75% of its territory within two months. About this informs The Times of Israel.
Five divisions, which include tens of thousands of Israeli soldiers, have already been mobilized to carry out this plan. The main objective of the operation is to destroy the military wing of the Hamas group and its civilian administration, unless the hostages are released.
As part of the ground offensive, the movement of the Palestinian population to three separate zones is foreseen:
- The first is the Mawasi district, located on the southern coast, previously declared by Israel as a “humanitarian zone”, where it is planned to accommodate approximately 700,000 people.
- The second is the strip between Deir al-Balah and Nuseirat in the central part of the enclave, where IDF ground forces have not yet operated. An estimated 300,000 to 350,000 Palestinians may be here.
- The third is the city of Gaza, where part of the population returned during the previous ceasefire regime. Currently, about a million people can live here.
Thus, if the operation is implemented, more than two million Gazans will be concentrated in an area covering only a quarter of the entire sector. After the population displacement is completed, the IDF plans to begin the active phase of the operation in the remaining areas, including Rafah, Khan Yunis and the northern areas of the sector. The plan is to destroy Hamas infrastructure and establish control over these areas.
Israel provides two months for the implementation of the plan to capture 75% of the sector. At this moment, the Israeli military already controls about 40% of the territory. The Israeli army focuses special attention on the network of Hamas tunnels, the total length of which, according to estimates, reaches 900 kilometers.
As for humanitarian aid, Israel plans to establish four distribution centers. Three of them should be in the Rafah area for the residents of Mawasi and the central part of the enclave, another one in the area of the Netsarim corridor for the residents of Gaza City and the northern sector. It is assumed that each of the centers will be able to provide up to 300,000 people per week, forming a five-day supply of food. Deliveries of medicines to hospitals and flour to bakeries are planned to continue.
