In a decisive escalation of its campaign against Hamas, Israel’s security cabinet approved on Monday a sweeping expansion of its ground operation in the Gaza Strip, mobilizing tens of thousands of reserve soldiers and paving the way for one of the largest Israeli troop deployments in years.
The dramatic decision followed a provocative missile attack launched earlier that day by Iranian-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen, who fired at Ben Gurion International Airport, Israel’s busiest air hub, in a blatant attempt to spread the conflict beyond Gaza’s borders. The strike, which was intercepted before impact, came just hours before Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu convened an emergency cabinet session to discuss what he described as "the next stage" of Israel’s war against Hamas.
“The IDF is shifting gears,” declared Israeli Chief of Staff Lieutenant General Eyal Zamir, who confirmed on Sunday that the military would both intensify and expand its operations. “We are increasing the pressure to bring back our hostages and to dismantle Hamas, sector by sector, tunnel by tunnel.”
🇮🇱🇵🇸ISRAEL APPROVES PLAN TO “CONQUER AND HOLD” GAZA
— Mario Nawfal (@MarioNawfal) May 5, 2025
Israel’s security cabinet has approved a sweeping military plan to conquer Gaza and retain control of the territory.
IDF Chief Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir warned ministers that such an operation could cost the lives of the 59… https://t.co/P1wTSQVFoh pic.twitter.com/FqPdniM4PQ
According to Zamir, the fresh wave of Israeli offensives will target new sectors within the Strip and aim to obliterate both aboveground strongholds and Hamas’s sprawling subterranean tunnel network, a sophisticated system used for attacks, smuggling, and the concealment of hostages.
Meanwhile, Gaza is entering its third month under the strictest blockade since the war began, as Israel enforces a full ban on the entry of food, fuel, and medical supplies—a move sparked by Hamas’s documented theft and resale of humanitarian aid, originally intended for civilians. Intelligence has shown that the terrorist organization has diverted critical supplies for profiteering and sustaining its war machine.
Israeli officials are working on a gradual mechanism that would allow humanitarian aid to enter Gaza under strict supervision, ensuring Hamas is cut off from manipulating or stealing these resources.
VERY INTERESTING 🔴🔴
— Open Source Intel (@Osint613) May 5, 2025
Israel’s Security Cabinet has approved an expanded military operation in Gaza. Prime Minister Netanyahu said the new strategy shifts from limited raids to full territorial conquest and long-term control.
The plan includes relocating Gaza’s population south… https://t.co/itBOqE367V
This aggressive posture follows the breakdown of a fragile eight-week ceasefire in mid-March, after negotiations for an extension collapsed. According to military sources, the new operations will include sweeps through Hamas strongholds and attempts to establish control in zones previously deemed too volatile for full ground occupation.
Currently, Israel controls about 50% of the Gaza Strip, including a strategically vital buffer zone along the Israeli border and three cross-Strip military corridors, which have carved Gaza into restricted enclaves. The intense military pressure, combined with deteriorating living conditions, has recently triggered rare protests against Hamas inside the Strip—though the terror organization still maintains an iron grip over the territory, bolstered by propaganda and fear tactics.
⚡️ Israel's Minister of Finance Bezalel Smotrich:
— War Intel (@warintel4u) May 4, 2025
"The time has come... to pounce on Gaza, occupy it... establish military government, take territory from them, implement President Trump's plan to remove 1.5-2 million Gazans from Gaza." pic.twitter.com/gV6zXEhDlt
While Hamas claims over 51,000 casualties since the onset of Israeli operations, these figures originate from Gaza’s Hamas-run Health Ministry, whose numbers have long been questioned by independent observers due to lack of transparency and deliberate inflation for political manipulation.
The war began on October 7, 2023, when Hamas launched an unprovoked terrorist rampage across southern Israel, murdering 1,200 civilians and soldiers, and abducting around 250 hostages, according to official Israeli figures. Since then, the IDF has methodically pushed deeper into the Strip, seeking to dismantle Hamas’s rule and rescue the remaining captives.
With the reserve call-up now underway and regional hostilities expanding, Israel appears poised for a prolonged, intensified campaign—one that may reshape the future of the Gaza Strip and the broader Middle East conflict.
