Israel approves total occupation of Gaza: yet another green light for Netanyahu’s bloody plan.

After ten hours of talks, the Israeli war cabinet has given the go-ahead to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s “horrible plan” to fully occupy the Gaza Strip. A radical shift (though not entirely surprising given the atrocities already committed by Israel against the civilian population) that is bound to fuel even more dire scenarios.

The total occupation of the Gaza Strip is now an official goal (finally, for the sake of coherence) openly embraced by Israel’s bloody government. The plan calls for a new, large-scale offensive by the Israeli military to take full control of the Palestinian enclave.

Currently, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) control approximately 75 percent of Gaza’s territory. The planned expansion into the central and southern areas—so far relatively spared by the fighting—risks worsening an already catastrophic humanitarian crisis.

According to United Nations estimates, over one million Palestinians are currently located in the at-risk areas.

A statement from the prime minister’s office outlined five core principles of the Israeli strategy, including “the establishment of a civil administration alternative to Hamas and the Palestinian National Authority,” and the “demilitarization of the Gaza Strip.” The latter, notably, is a condition unilaterally imposed by Tel Aviv, given that the IDF is expected to continue military operations once the bloodbath—already scheduled for the coming hours—has been executed.

Despite political approval, the plan has not received unanimous support within the military establishment. Chief of Staff General Eyal Zamir voiced serious concerns: “There is no humanitarian solution for the one million people we’ll be displacing. And I doubt, under these conditions, that we can ensure the return of the hostages,” he reportedly said during the meeting, according to Israeli media.

Zamir is also said to have proposed removing the return of the hostages as an official war objective, highlighting the complexity of the operation and the risks to Israel’s international legitimacy—a point that is becoming increasingly critical, given the growing (and justified) public discontent with the Israeli government.

A plan that, despite the lack of an official stance from Washington, is unlikely to face opposition from the U.S. administration. Netanyahu, in practice, has a free hand.

At the same time, Israel’s bloody prime minister stated in a Fox News interview that Israel “does not intend to govern Gaza,” but hopes to transfer control to Arab forces that could ensure stability and security for both Israel and Palestinian civilians. It’s one thing to fool the media—but let’s not pretend we’re all Americans…

The military expansion into densely populated areas—where hundreds of thousands of internally displaced people have taken refuge—is now likely to exacerbate the already ferocious humanitarian crisis. Over the past 24 hours (as usual), according to local health sources, 98 people have been reported killed in Gaza. International humanitarian organizations have again warned Tel Aviv that forcibly evacuating one million civilians in such a short time is “logistically impossible and morally unacceptable.” In short, it’s glaringly obvious that the groundwork is being laid for yet another massacre—one that no world power seems willing to prosecute.

Photo: Army Sgt. 1st Class Theresa Gualdarama, National Guard