
Israel's Netanyahu to convene cabinet on Gaza war goals
"We must continue to stand together and fight together to achieve all our war objectives: the defeat of the enemy, the release of our hostages, and the assurance that Gaza will no longer pose a threat to Israel," Netanyahu said at the outset of a regular cabinet meeting.
Israel's Channel 12 cited an official from his office as saying that Netanyahu was inclining towards expanding the offensive and seizing the entire Palestinian enclave.
Israeli media reported that the cabinet would meet on Tuesday to make a decision on that.
Netanyahu's office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The Gaza war began when Hamas killed 1,200 people and took 251 hostage in an attack on southern Israel on October 7, 2023, according to Israeli figures. Israel's offensive has since killed more than 60,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza health officials.
According to Israeli officials, 50 hostages now remain in Gaza, only 20 of whom are believed to be alive.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


ITV News
14 minutes ago
- ITV News
'The most devastating images': Home secretary reacts to ITV News' aerial footage of Gaza
Speaking to ITV News, the Home Secretary described the images taken by ITV News over Gaza as "the most devastating" Home Secretary Yvette Cooper has described newly released aerial images of Gaza as 'devastating,' saying they underscore the urgent need for a ceasefire, humanitarian aid, and a comprehensive plan to address the deepening crisis in the Middle East. Her comments come after ITV News aired the first independent aerial footage from over Gaza in months, showing the sheer scale of destruction caused by nearly two years of war. Filmed by International Editor Emma Murphy on board a plane delivering aid, the footage captures vast swathes of Gaza reduced to dust, entire neighbourhoods flattened and turned to rubble. Speaking to ITV News on Tuesday, Cooper said: 'Well, those are the most devastating images and to see that scale of destruction across Gaza. "Of course, we have also seen the terrible images of malnutrition among children, and we've seen the really disturbing images of some of the hostages still being held. "So it shows really why it is so urgent that we get the ceasefire, the humanitarian assistance and also a proper plan going forward, as the prime minister has set out, including not just the pathway around recognition, but also a whole series of much wider steps in terms of tackling this crisis in the Middle East.' The aerials show areas like Al-Zahraa City virtually levelled, with one of the only buildings still standing - the Al Wafa Centre for Elderly Care - surrounded by ruins. The centre, which provides free care for elderly Palestinians without families, was hit in November 2023, according to local reports, killing its director, Dr Medhat Muheisen. In March, an Israeli strike demolished the only cancer hospital in Gaza. The Israeli army said it was being used by Hamas operatives, providing no evidence to support the claim. The ariels also depicted a primary and secondary school, surrounded by ruins. There is no public information about what happened to the lives of those who once lived in the area, nor that of the pupils who once filtered through the halls of the school. Since October 7, 2023 - when 1,200 Israelis were killed in Hamas-led attacks - Israel has launched a prolonged military campaign across the Gaza Strip. More than 60,000 Palestinians have been killed since then, according to the territory's health ministry. Alongside the physical devastation, a humanitarian catastrophe continues to unfold. Gaza's Health Ministry claims 87 adults have died from malnutrition since late June, with at least 93 children having died from hunger-related causes since the war began. Israel denies that famine is occurring, but UN experts have warned the territory is facing a 'worst-case scenario.' Israeli broadcaster Channel 12 has reported that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is set to convene a high-level security meeting on Tuesday. It's understood that the goal of the session is to finalise strategic options for Gaza, ahead of a broader cabinet meeting later this week. The pressure on Netanyahu's government to reach a ceasefire is growing, especially following the recent release of videos showing visibly emaciated Israeli hostages still held in Gaza. A previous round of negotiations collapsed in July, after US envoy Steve Witkoff accused Hamas of showing 'a lack of desire' to reach a deal. As destruction deepens and the humanitarian crisis worsens, Cooper's remarks reflect increasing international calls for both immediate relief and a viable long-term political solution.


BreakingNews.ie
15 minutes ago
- BreakingNews.ie
Ex-Israeli security chiefs call for end to war as Netanyahu hints at new stage
Former Israeli army and intelligence chiefs called for an end to the war in Gaza as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu hinted at further military action and Israel's government plotted its next move in the devastated territory. On the ground in Gaza, health officials reported new deaths on Tuesday of Palestinians seeking food at distribution points. Advertisement The Israeli defence body co-ordinating aid to Gaza announced a new deal with local merchants to improve aid deliveries as desperation mounts. The former security officials speaking out included those who led Israel's Shin Bet internal security service, Mossad spy agency and the Israeli military. In a roughly three-minute video posted to social media this week, they demanded an end to the war and said the far-right members of the government are holding the country 'hostage' in prolonging the conflict. 'This is leading the state of Israel to the loss of its security and its identity,' Ami Ayalon, former head of Shin Bet, said in the footage. Advertisement Yoram Cohen, former head of Shin Bet, called Mr Netanyahu's objectives 'a fantasy'. 'If anyone imagines that we can reach every terrorist and every pit and every weapon and in parallel bring our hostages home, I think it is impossible,' he said. Mr Netanyahu, meanwhile, announced on Monday that he would convene his Security Cabinet in the coming days to direct the army on the next stage of the war, hinting that even tougher military action was an option in Gaza. Mr Netanyahu said he remained committed to achieving his war objectives, including defeating Hamas, releasing all hostages and ensuring Gaza never again threatens Israel. Advertisement Israeli media said the meeting was expectedon Tuesday, with disagreements between Mr Netanyahu and the army chief, Lt Gen Eyal Zamir, on how to proceed. The reports, citing anonymous officials in Mr Netanyahu's office, said the prime minister was pushing the army, which already controls about three quarters of Gaza, to conquer the entire territory, a step that could endanger the hostages, deepen the humanitarian crisis in Gaza and further isolate Israel internationally. Various reports have said Mr Zamir opposes this step and could step down or be pushed out if it is approved. Palestinians struggle to get food from the back of a truck in southern Gaza (Mariam Dagga/AP) Several hundred Palestinians have been killed by Israeli fire since May while heading toward food distribution sites, airdropped parcels and aid convoys in Gaza, according to witnesses, local health officials and the United Nations human rights office. Advertisement The Israeli military says it has fired only warning shots and disputes the toll. The Israeli defence body in charge of co-ordinating aid to Gaza, called COGAT, wrote on X that there will be a 'gradual and controlled renewal of the entry of goods through the private sector in Gaza'. 'This aims to increase the volume of aid entering the Gaza Strip, while reducing reliance on aid collection by the UN and international organisations,' it said Tuesday. A limited number of local merchants were approved for the plan and will sell basic food products, baby food, fruit and vegetables, and hygiene supplies through bank transfers, COGAT said. Advertisement Thousands of Palestinians crowded against aid trucks entering the Gaza Strip through the southern Morag corridor on Monday, attempting to get whatever food they could during a protracted food shortage across the enclave. Mohammed Qassas from Khan Younis in southern Gaza said his children are so hungry that he is forced to storm aid trucks. 'I have young children, how am I supposed to feed them? No one has mercy. This resembles the end of the world,' he said. 'If we fight, we get the food. If we don't fight, we don't get anything.' As the trucks drove away, men climbed onto them, scrambling for any remaining scraps. 'The conditions are very challenging and we are hoping for a system to be in place,' Mr Qassas said. 'Some people go home with some 200 kilogrammes (441 pounds), and others go home with only one kilogramme (35 ounces). It is a mafia-like system.' After relentless efforts to get food from the trucks, it has become a routine for men to be seen coming back carrying flour sacks on their back, as well as carrying wounded and dead bodies from near the aid sites. Yusif Abu Mor from Khan Younis said the trucks' aid system is akin to a death trap. 'This aid is stained with humiliation and blood,' he said, adding that aid seekers run the risk of being killed by shootings or run over by aid trucks surrounded by crowds of hungry Palestinians. Israel's blockade and military offensive have made it nearly impossible to deliver aid safely, contributing to the territory's slide towards famine nearly 22 months into the war with Hamas. Aid groups say Israel's week-old measures to allow more aid in are far from sufficient. Families of hostages in Gaza fear starvation affects them too, but blame Hamas. As international alarm has mounted, several countries have airdropped aid over Gaza. The UN and aid groups call such drops costly and dangerous for residents, and say they deliver far less aid than trucks.


BBC News
15 minutes ago
- BBC News
Netanyahu to propose full reoccupation of Gaza, Israeli media report
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is to propose fully reoccupying the Gaza Strip when he meets his security cabinet, Israeli media say."The die has been cast. We're going for the full conquest of the Gaza Strip – and defeating Hamas," local journalists quote a senior official to reports that the army chief and other military leaders oppose the plan, the unnamed official said: "If that doesn't work for the chief of staff, he should resign."The families of hostages fear such plans could endanger their loved ones, with 20 out of 50 believed to be alive in Gaza, while polls suggest three in four Israelis instead favour a ceasefire deal to return them. Many of Israel's close allies would also condemn such a move as they push for an end to the war and action to alleviate a humanitarian Israel, hundreds of retired Israeli security officials, including former heads of intelligence agencies, issued a joint letter to US President Donald Trump on Monday, calling for him to pressure Netanyahu to end the of the signatories, ex-domestic intelligence agency chief Ami Ayalon, told the BBC that further military action would be futile."From the military point of view, [Hamas] is totally destroyed. On the other hand, as an ideology it is getting more and more power among the Palestinian people, within the Arab street around us, and also in the world of Islam."So the only way to defeat Hamas's ideology is to present a better future."The latest developments come after indirect talks with Hamas on a ceasefire and hostage deal broke down and Palestinian armed groups released three videos of two Israeli hostages looking weak and footage of Rom Blaslavski and Evyatar David, both kidnapped from the Nova festival on 7 October 2023, has shocked and appalled Israelis. David is shown digging what he says is his own grave in an underground tunnel. There has been some speculation that the latest media announcements are a pressure tactic to try to force Hamas into a new military says it already has operational control of 75% of Gaza. But under the proposed plan it would occupy the entire territory – moving into areas where more than two million Palestinians are now is unclear what that would mean for civilians and for the operations of the UN and other aid groups. About 90% of Gaza's 2.1m people have been displaced, some repeatedly, and are living in overcrowded and dire conditions. Humanitarian groups and UN officials say many are starving, accusing Israel of impeding the distribution of crucial aid. The Israeli military has previously held back from some areas, including parts of central Gaza, because of an assumption that there are living hostages held there. Last year, six Israeli hostages were executed by their captors after ground forces moved has not been a formal response but officials from the Palestinian Authority, which governs parts of the occupied West Bank, denounced the Israeli proposal, calling on the international community to intervene to prevent any new military point out that far-right Israeli ministers have been openly advocating for the full occupation and annexation of Gaza and ultimately want to build new Jewish settlements 2005, Israel dismantled settlements in the Gaza Strip and withdrew its forces from there. But alongside Egypt, it maintained a tight control of access to the territory. The new occupation idea comes amid growing international moves to revive the two-state solution – the long-time international formula to resolve the decades-old Israel-Palestinian conflict. It envisages an independent Palestinian state being created alongside Israel in the West Bank and Gaza Strip with East Jerusalem as its capital. Last week, the UK and Canada joined France in announcing conditional plans for recognising a Palestinian state. The Israeli PM is now expected to meet with key ministers and military leaders to decide next steps in Gaza. Israeli army radio says they are due to discuss initial army plans to surround the central refugee camps and carry out air strikes and ground said he would convene a full security cabinet meeting this media commentators have voiced scepticism and drawn attention to the practical military, political and diplomatic challenges. Writing in the Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper, Nahum Barnea says: "Netanyahu has never taken a gamble on this scale before."He notes that the Israeli PM has repeated his vow to achieve all of his war goals. "But after 22 months of bloody fighting, it is hard to take those kinds of promises seriously. It seems that Netanyahu has just one objective in the war in Gaza, to prolong the war."Israel launched its military offensive in Gaza in response to Hamas's attack on southern Israel on 7 October 2023, in which about 1,200 people were killed and 251 others taken to Gaza as hostages. At least 61,020 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces in Gaza since then, the Hamas-run health ministry says.