Call-Up of 100,000 Israeli troops for Gaza occupation

The Hebrew daily Yedioth Ahronoth reported that the plan for occupying Gaza City—proposed by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu—includes the large-scale deployment of army forces across the length and breadth of the city. IDF Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir has approved the general outlines of the operation, and preparations for a mass call-up of troops have begun.

According to the report, the plan envisions between 80,000 and 100,000 soldiers from the regular army and reserves taking part in the operation. In the coming days, the Israeli army will hold additional meetings to review the operation’s details, including the method of advancing through the city and handling high-rise buildings in western Gaza.

Yedioth further wrote that a final decision on the methods and structure of the operation will be made after the Israeli cabinet approves the plans, at which point preparations for the participating units will commence. However, no exact timetable has yet been set for the troops’ entry into Gaza City.

During a 10-hour meeting of Israel’s security-political cabinet—held from the evening of Thursday, August 7, until Friday morning—the occupation of Gaza and the expansion of military operations there were approved.

The cabinet’s approval of the Gaza occupation plan, despite opposition from senior Israeli military officials, drew reactions from leaders of opposition parties in the occupied territories.

Officials and governments from various countries have also issued statements in recent days strongly condemning the Israeli cabinet’s decision and calling for a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip.