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Israel’s security cabinet has signed off on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s plan for the military to take control of Gaza City and strip Hamas of its weapons, his office announced early Friday.
The plan calls for Israeli forces to move into the northern city, establish control, and oversee the delivery of humanitarian aid to civilians in areas away from the fighting.
According to Netanyahu’s office, the strategy also includes retrieving all hostages, both alive and dead, enforcing the demilitarization of Gaza, and maintaining Israeli security control over the territory. It also envisions the creation of a new political administration that would be run by neither Hamas nor the Palestinian Authority.
The statement did not clarify whether Israel also intends to impose its control across the West Bank, something Netanyahu had hinted at a day earlier.
Speaking to Fox News, Netanyahu said Israel’s goal is to eliminate Hamas, free Gaza’s civilians from what he called “the terrible terrorism” of the group, and eventually hand over governance to leaders who do not advocate for Israel’s destruction.
The decision came after more than 10 hours of security council talks that stretched into the early morning.
Israeli media reported that a full occupation of Gaza could take up to six months to complete. The German news agency DPA cited estimates that Israel now controls about 75% of the blockaded enclave, which has been ravaged by nearly two years of war. The United Nations has warned that the fighting has pushed Gaza’s population to the brink of famine.
Source: AP News, Reuters
