FLASH
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The Israeli military (IDF) has warned that implementing the orders of the Benjamin Netanyahu-led government to destroy all of Gaza City, above and below ground, as happened in the towns of Beit Hanoun and Rafah, could take many months, possibly more than a year.
This announcement comes after Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz threatened on Friday that if Hamas does not accept Israel's conditions for ending the war, Gaza City will turn into "another Rafah."
"The Haaretz," citing the IDF, writes that a major offensive in Gaza City would cause a deepening crisis with reserve units, which are facing increasingly low turnout and poor morale.
IDF Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir has told government leaders that he will not launch any major offensive in Gaza without first establishing a "humanitarian zone" for residents.
He also stressed that military action will not begin without the necessary operational and legal preparations, despite Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's request to accelerate the operation.
So far, no such area for displaced Palestinians has been created, meaning that significant infrastructure work will be required. IDF sources point out that the evacuation of Rafah took two weeks, and the estimate is that the evacuation of Gaza City, with its approximately 1.2 million inhabitants, will take even longer.
According to the IDF, the plan presented by the army chief allows the army to stop fighting if an agreement is reached for the release of hostages and a ceasefire with Hamas.
The IDF emphasizes that its position is to exhaust all diplomatic efforts and secure as many hostages as possible before undertaking any attack on Gaza City, due to serious concerns for their safety during the heavy fighting.
Tensions between the military leadership and the government are high, especially over the risk the offensive poses to the lives of the hostages. Senior IDF officials stressed over the weekend that the chief of staff will not act illegally and will fully follow the instructions of the Military Prosecutor General, Yifat Tomer-Yerushalmi.
Currently, three IDF divisions are active in Gaza:
-99th Division: is fighting in the Zeitoun neighborhood, on the outskirts of Gaza City.
-162nd Division: active in Jabaliya and near the Sabra neighborhood in Gaza.
-36th Division: operates in the Morag corridor and the Khan Yunis area.
In addition, the IDF's Gaza Division is responsible for securing the Philadelphia Corridor (the Gaza-Egypt border) in the south and overseeing food distribution points in that area.
The IDF has issued orders to call up around 60,000 reservists, who are expected to report on September 2. Most of them will replace troops in the West Bank and northern border, so that the latter can participate in the offensive on Gaza City.
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