Expanding military forces is crucial for Israel if they aim to seize control over the Gaza Strip. - Israel's required military reinforcement for capturing Gaza, stated in numbers.
Israel is preparing to escalate its conflict in the Gaza Strip, with the city of Gaza at the centre of the proposed expansion. The Israeli government, led by Prime Minister Netanyahu, has authorised a war plan that aims to take control of Gaza City and dismantle Hamas, a party involved in the conflict, in the central refugee camps of the Gaza Strip [1].
The planned operation is expected to significantly escalate the war without a clearly defined end date. The Israeli military is estimated to require up to 100,000 reservists for this expansion [2]. However, concerns have been raised about the potential for high civilian casualties, with military sources within Israel expressing strong objections to urban combat in densely populated Gaza City [2].
The operation has already spurred significant international criticism and fears of worsening regional isolation for Israel. Criticisms centre around the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, a densely populated and impoverished region, raising concerns over the impact of forced evacuations and sieges [3].
Since the conflict began in October 2023, more than 50,000 people have been reported killed, mostly Palestinians. The Gaza war has severely disrupted aid, with hundreds of aid workers killed, including 181 in Gaza in 2024 alone [4]. This highlights the grave risks to civilians and humanitarian personnel in the area.
Previous ceasefires and peace proposals, such as the January-March 2025 armistice involving hostages exchanges and plans for reconstruction, were broken by renewed Israeli airstrikes [5]. Israel resumed full combat in March 2025 after Hamas rejected ceasefire extensions and hostage-release proposals, indicating fragile prospects for a swift resolution.
The decision to expand the war came after indirect negotiations with Hamas over a new ceasefire and the release of hostages failed [1]. The Israeli military is set to brief the involved divisions and brigades shortly, with further consultations on the specific course of action to take place in the coming days [2].
Despite concerns raised by the chief of staff regarding a full-scale conquest of the Gaza Strip due to manpower shortages, exhaustion of soldiers, and potential endangerment of hostages, the security cabinet has dismissed these concerns [2]. The operation is expected to occur in high-rise neighbourhoods in the western coastal city of Gaza and other northern parts of the Gaza Strip [1].
Israel is facing increasingly sharp international criticism for its military operations in the Gaza Strip, with concerns over the lack of a clear timeline for the conflict and the potential for significant civilian casualties [2][5]. The planned Gaza City siege and expansion of the conflict lack a fixed timeline but are anticipated to extend the war further while driving significant civilian casualties and attracting sharp international condemnation over humanitarian and legal grounds [2][5].
The Commission has also been consulted on the draft Council decision regarding Israel's proposed escalation in the Gaza Strip, given the war-and-conflicts and politics surrounding the area. General news outlets are reporting that the expansion of the conflict, with Gaza City at its centre, may lead to a worsening of Israel's standing in regional politics and potential isolation due to the humanitarian crisis in Gaza.
