Israel's security cabinet OKs Netanyahu's plan to occupy Gaza
Aug. 8 (UPI) -- Israel's security cabinet overnight Thursday approved Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's plan to take control of Gaza, despite staunch opposition, including from his own military, which warns that an increased offensive in the Palestinian enclave could endanger the lives of Israeli hostages.
The prime minister's office described the plan early Friday as aimed at defeating Hamas, one of Israel's objectives in its nearly two-year-old war against the Iran-backed militia.
"The IDF will prepare for taking control of Gaza City while distributing humanitarian assistance to the civilian population outside the combat zones," the prime minister's office said in a statement.
The five principles of the plan approved include disarming Hamas, returning all hostages to Israel, demilitarizing Gaza, gaining security control of Gaza and establishing a civil administration that is neither Hamas, which governed the enclave for nearly two decades, nor the Palestinian Authority, which oversees partial control of the Israel-occupied West Bank.
The Israel Defense Forces reportedly already control 75% of Gaza, with the remaining 25% mostly being Gaza City and the surrounding area where the majority of the roughly 2 million Palestinians now live. It is also believed that this is where the remaining 48 Israeli hostages are being kept. Not all are believed to be alive.
Opposition leader Yair Lapid lambasted the plan in a statement, saying it is "what Hamas wanted," which is "for Israel to become bogged down in the field without a goal, without defining the vision for the date after, in a pointless occupation that no one understands where it leads."
He accused Netanyahu of being "dragged" into the move by the far-right of his coalition government, saying it is "in complete contradiction" to the opinion of the military and security officials.
The plan, he continued, does not consider the wear and exhaustion of combat forces and "will take many long months, lead to the death of the hostages, the killing of many soldiers, cost Israeli taxpayers tens of billions and result in diplomatic collapse."
Shortly after the security cabinet's decision was announced, Britain came out against it, with Prime Minister Keir Starmer calling the order to escalate its offensive "wrong."
"This action will do nothing to bring an end to this conflict or to help secure the release of the hostages. It will only bring more bloodshed," he said in a statement.
"What we need is a cease-fire, a surge in humanitarian aid, the release of all hostages by Hamas and a negotiated solution."
The announcement comes as Gaza faces a worsening humanitarian crisis that could worsen under the new offensive.
On Wednesday, the United Nations' Food and Agriculture Organization reported that only 1.5% of Gaza cropland is both accessible and undamaged by the war.
A day before, a group of U.N. experts called for the immediate dismantling of the Israel-formed and U.S.-supported Gaza Humanitarian Foundation on the grounds it is "an utterly disturbing example of how humanitarian relief can be exploited for covert military and geopolitical agendas in breach of international law."
It said Israeli forces and foreign contractors have opened fire on people seeking aid at GHF distribution sites, killing nearly 1,400 people and injuring more than 4,000.
There has been concern over the humanitarian situation in Gaza since the beginning of the war, but calls for relief have amplified as people have started to die from starvation.
According to the Palestinian Ministry of Health, at least five people have died of starvation and malnutrition in the last 24 hours. A total of 193 people, including 96 children have died of starvation, it said.
U.N. statistics show that famine is threatening Gaza.
"This is unlike anything we have seen in this century," U.N. World Food Programme Ross Smith told reporters late last month.
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