After an all-night discussion last Thursday, Israel’s Security Cabinet approved a proposal to expand the war on Hamas including reoccupying the Gaza Strip, and adopting five principles for ending the war, the Prime Minister’s Office announced early Friday morning.
“The IDF [Israel Defense Forces] will prepare to take control of Gaza City while providing humanitarian aid to the civilian population outside the combat zones,” Netanyahu’s office said.
Ahead of the meeting, Netanyahu told a delegation of Indian journalists, “Israel does not want to annex Gaza, but to transfer control of the Strip to an international governing body that is disconnected from Hamas.”
An “international governing body” disconnected from Hamas aligns with Netanyahu’s broader stated goal of removing Hamas from power while avoiding direct Israeli administrative control of Gaza. We don’t know if we can count on an “international governing body” made of pro-Israel nations. Many countries have already declared their support for a Palestinian state and others are starting to let the world know they intend to follow suit thinking they will save Gaza with the delirious two-state solution. With that said, Netanyahu’s decision is a very troubling one and most certainly not the resolution we anticipated we’d hear.