Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday said he had directed the country’s military to expand its control over the Gaza Strip to 70 per cent.
Speaking at a conference in an Israeli settlement in the occupied West Bank, Netanyahu said Israeli forces were steadily tightening pressure on Hamas.
“We are currently squeezing Hamas. We now control 60 per cent of the territory in the strip,” he said, news agency AFP reported citing a video broadcast by Israel’s Channel 12 network.
He added that under the existing ceasefire arrangements, the military had controlled around half of Gaza. “My directive is to move to… 70 per cent,” Netanyahu said.
“We’re squeezing them from all (sides). We’ll deal with what’s left afterwards.”
Ceasefire terms remain stalled
The remarks come as negotiations over the next stage of the ceasefire remain deadlocked months after the first phase of the truce was implemented.
The initial phase saw the release of the remaining hostages taken during Hamas’s October 7, 2023 attack on Israel, in exchange for Palestinians held in Israeli detention.
The second phase was expected to focus on Hamas laying down arms and a gradual withdrawal of Israeli troops from parts of Gaza. However, progress has stalled, with both sides accusing each other of violating the agreement.
Under the terms of the ceasefire, Israeli forces were expected to withdraw behind a so-called “yellow line” separating territory controlled by Hamas from areas held by the Israeli military.
Netanyahu signals wider military push
Netanyahu has in recent weeks repeatedly hinted at expanding Israel’s military footprint inside Gaza.
On May 15, he said Israeli forces had already widened their hold over the enclave.
“There were those who said: get out, get out. We did not get out. Today we control… how much? 60 percent. Tomorrow we shall see,” he had said at the time.
Despite the ceasefire, violence has continued across Gaza almost daily. Hamas and the Israeli military have traded accusations over breaches of the truce since it came into effect on October 10.
According to Gaza’s health ministry, which operates under Hamas authority and whose figures are considered reliable by the United Nations, more than 900 people have been killed by Israeli strikes since the ceasefire began, AFP reported.
Meanwhile, Israel said on Wednesday that it had killed Mohammed Odeh, the new head of Hamas’s armed wing in Gaza, weeks after eliminating his predecessor.
Since the start of the war triggered by Hamas’s October 2023 attack, Israel has carried out an extensive campaign targeting the group’s leadership in Gaza as well as elsewhere in the region.
(With AFP inputs)
