Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is pushing for a shortened timeline for the upcoming operation to capture Gaza City, dubbed “Gideon’s Chariot 2,” Ynet reported.
According to Netanyahu, the operation could become similar in scale and significance to the Battle of Berlin at the end of World War II and should lead to a decisive defeat of Hamas (a group recognised as a terrorist group in the EU and the US).
The exact timing of the start of ground operations by the Israeli army in Gaza has not yet been determined. “We will expand activities in the coming days,” said Israel Defence Forces (IDF) Chief of General Staff Eyal Zamer.
The Israeli army has already conducted operations in areas around the city over the past two weeks, including in Gaza City’s largest neighbourhood, Zeitoun, but a major ground offensive is estimated to be unlikely to begin before September. It will depend directly on Israel’s attempts to evacuate some one million Gaza Strip residents to the south.
The process of relocating the residents involves serious complications and requires close co-operation with the UN, which is seen as a key partner in organising the evacuation.
In the south of the Gaza Strip, extensive work has begun to rebuild the “European hospital” in the east of Khan Younis. The medical facility is under the control of the Israeli military. Gaza City doctors and patients will be transferred there. The IDF recently informed the Hamas-controlled Ministry of Health to remove patients and medical staff from the city.
Israeli authorities say one of the main objectives of the military operation in Gaza remains the release of hostages taken by the Jihadists during the attack on southern Israel on 7 October 2023. According to the latest figures, 50 hostages remain, including a soldier killed back in 2014. Twenty hostages are believed to be alive. At the same time, US President Donald Trump suggested that less than 20 people could be alive.