The military announced Saturday night as Israel mobilized thousands of reserves to bolster its campaign against Hamas in the Gaza Strip, and it appears that it is poised to expand its attacks on Palestinian enclaves on Saturday night.
The call suggested that the Israeli government was preparing to shift tactics in an attempt to force them. It is unclear whether Hamas will prove successful as he fought a critical rebellion through more than a year of Israeli business in Gaza.
Israeli security ministers, chaired by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, will meet on Sunday to formally sign off to expand the campaign in Gaza, said Israeli officials spoke on condition of anonymity as they were not permitted to speak publicly.
The announcement of the mobilization exacerbated the fears of Gaza, which has banned Israel from invading food, medicine and other humanitarian aid for more than two months. Disturbed from more than a year of hunger and battle, many still evacuated or alive in the tiled bleeds in their homes.
After Israel ended a two-month ceasefire with Hamas in mid-March, Israeli forces resumed their attacks across the enclave. However, Israeli jets and drones regularly fire Gaza out of the air, but Israeli ground forces slowed their advance after seizing territory.
More than 50,000 people have been killed in Israel's military campaign against Hamas in Gaza, according to Gaza Health Authorities. They do not distinguish between combatants and civilians, but their tally includes thousands of children.
The war began after Hamas led a surprising attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, where around 1,200 people were killed and around 250 were brought back to Gaza as hostages. In the aftermath, Israeli leaders vowed to destroy Hamas in Gaza and release all prisoners of war detained there.
Despite more than a year of devastating war, Israel has yet to fully achieve any of these objectives. While Israel was able to kill many of Hamas' leaders, Palestinian extremists have fought a stubborn war of attrition, they are believed to recruit new fighters for their cause, and still hold up to 24 living hostages and dozens of other bodies.
Early in the war, Israeli forces passed through enclaves, leveled out the belts of Gaza cities, and stomped hundreds of thousands of Palestinians. But they frequently returned to various regions, and there they confronted what was called the new Hamas existence.
International mediators, including the Trump administration, have tried to mediate a new ceasefire between Israel and Hamas to release hostages in exchange for Palestinians in Israeli prisons. However, both parties have set forth seemingly conflicting terms for the transaction.
Israel demanded that Hamas abandon the arm, but the group refused. Hamas says it will not release any more hostages until Israel commits to an agreement that includes a complete end to the war and a complete withdrawal from the Gaza Strip.
The call-up announcement caused deeper anxiety among hostage families. They tried to rally the Israelis and put pressure on the government to reach a new ceasefire with Hamas.
Yotham Cohen, whose brothers were accused of defeating the previous ceasefire and leading the country into a new avoidable war with Hamas. He sought an immediate deal with Hamas to free his brother, who is believed to be still alive.
“Instead of engaging him in the agreement, Netanyahu is sending soldiers to the war that kills him,” Cohen said at a rally on Saturday.
Netanyahu suggests that bringing the remaining hostages home is less important than crucial defeating Hamas. In his interview and speech, Netanyahu promised Israel's official “absolute victory” over the group.
Freeing prisoners was a “important goal,” Netanyahu said in his speech Thursday. “But in war we have the highest goal, which defeats our enemies,” he added.
Israel's military has been served for months by many who have served for months since the war began.
However, these classes are boiling down their opposition to government acts of war. Last month, a group of Air Force reserves and retired officers signed an official letter urging them to sign a contract with Hamas to return hostages, even at the price that stopped the war in Gaza.
