As Israel announces plan to take over Gaza city, key questions answered

Israel’s security cabinet has agreed that the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) will prepare to take control of Gaza City. The city was the most populous area in Gaza before the war, and home to hundreds of thousands of Palestinians.

Speaking to Fox News ahead of a security cabinet meeting, Netanyahu was asked whether Israel would take control of the enclave. He responded: “We intend to, in order to ensure our security, remove Hamas there, enable the population to be free of Gaza and to pass it to civilian governance  that is not Hamas and not anyone advocating the destruction of Israel.”

Netanyahu previously said he wanted Israel to control the entire Gaza Strip. In this new plan, only Gaza City is mentioned. The BBC reports this may be the first phase of a wider takeover.

Israel has said it currently has control over  75 per cent of Gaza, while the UN estimates some 86 per cent of the territory is either in militarised zones or under evacuation orders.

The plan aims to have Israeli forces move to take control of the largest city in the enclave for the first time during this conflict.

According to the Israeli prime minister’s office, the plan rests on five principles:

• Disarm Hamas
• Return all hostages, both living and dead
• Demilitarise the Gaza Strip
• Maintain Israeli security control
• Establish an alternative civilian administration not linked to Hamas or the Palestinian Authority

Israel has not given a date. Israeli media reports suggest the military will not move in immediately and that residents would be told to leave first. Israel believed the "alternative plan" presented to its cabinet wouldn't have achieved the "defeat of Hamas or the return of the abductees." The alternative plan reportedly came from the army's chief of staff and was more limited in scope.

However, no timeline for Gaza's post-takeover government has been shared .

Netanyahu told Fox News that Israel does “not want to keep” Gaza but wants to hand it over to “Arab forces” while maintaining a security perimeter. BBC noted that he has been vague about which countries might be involved; Jordan and Egypt have ruled out entering Gaza after an Israeli occupation.

"We want to have a security perimeter. We don't want to govern it," Netanyahu had told the channel.

Hamas has warned of “fierce resistance” and accused Netanyahu of trying to sabotage ceasefire talks. The group says it will only release remaining hostages in return for a lasting ceasefire and Israeli withdrawal.

Hostage families have said the plan “is leading us toward a colossal catastrophe” for both hostages and soldiers. CNN reported that the IDF chief of staff is believed to have opposed the plan, arguing Hamas no longer poses a significant military threat.

UN human rights chief Volker Türk warned of “more massive forced displacement” and “more killing” if the plan goes ahead, according to the BBC.

• UK PM Keir Starmer called the move “wrong” and said it will “only bring more bloodshed”.

The Israeli Government’s decision to further escalate its offensive in Gaza is wrong, and we urge it to reconsider immediately.

Every day the humanitarian crisis in Gaza worsens and hostages taken by Hamas are being held in appalling and inhuman conditions.

• Saudi Arabia condemned what it called “starvation crimes” and “ethnic cleansing”.
• Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi reiterated “categorical rejection” of Palestinian displacement.
• Jordan said it was an extension of Israel’s “policy of blockade”.
• China urged Israel to “stop the dangerous move at once”.
• European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said the decision “must be reconsidered” and called for a ceasefire.
• But, speaking from the UK, US V-P JD Vance said the US has no plans to recognise a Palestinian state

Before the war, the city had about 700,000 residents. Many fled early in the conflict but some returned during a ceasefire earlier this year. Large numbers remain, along with many displaced people from other parts of Gaza.

Gaza’s health ministry says over 61,000 people have been killed since the war began, nearly half of them children, with starvation worsening. Israel denies that famine exists but aid agencies and UN officials say hunger is spreading rapidly.

(With inputs from agencies)