A cabinet meeting to vote on the full occupation of Gaza is scheduled for Thursday, running from 6:00 PM to 11:00 PM local time, though discussions are expected to extend late into the night, well beyond the allotted five hours. Israeli commentators estimate Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s proposal will likely secure majority support, regardless of its final wording.
However, the debate faces significant hurdles. Internal government opposition includes Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar, returning from a special UN session on hostages, and Shas party leader Aryeh Deri. While Deri cannot vote as a non-minister, he has cut short a Swiss holiday to forcefully advocate against the plan. Netanyahu must also contend with objections from Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir. Zamir opposes expanding the campaign to the entire Strip due to risks to the estimated 20 remaining living hostages, the strain on soldiers after 670 days of fighting, and the prospect of 4-5 more months of intense combat.
Opposition leader Yair Lapid delivered a stark warning: “The public does not support you and does not want this war.” Hostage families have intensified criticism, accusing Netanyahu (“Bibi”) of being on the verge of “getting his hands dirty with the blood of their children. A shame that will haunt his descendants for generations.” In Tel Aviv, protesters clashed with police outside military headquarters, while soldiers’ mothers demonstrated at the IDF chief’s residence demanding he “not yield to political pressure.” Meanwhile, Hamas’s Health Ministry reported 135 new fatalities in Gaza within the last 24 hours.
Foreign Minister Sa’ar, who has backed encircling Hamas, pursuing attrition, and continuing negotiations—the generals’ plan—will challenge the stance of messianic ministers Bezalel Smotrich and Itamar Ben Gvir. They envision a future ‘single land of Israel, gifted by God’ (including Gaza and the West Bank) for the Jewish people. This dynamic points toward an inevitable expansion of the war in Gaza. Yet, a senior Israeli official hinted to media: “From here to tomorrow, only God knows. Things can change in the Middle East, and even tonight US President Donald Trump might unveil a major humanitarian plan,” suggesting the seemingly imminent decision on occupying the Strip could still be swiftly altered.
Netanyahu’s strategic team is urgently mobilizing to capitalize on the moment. His office stated there is currently no prospect of securing the hostages’ release, negotiations have stalled, and hostages risk starvation. Analyst Ehud Yaari explained Hamas’s position on Channel 12: “The IDF ground operation hasn’t pressured the Qatar and Turkey-backed Hamas leadership abroad toward compromise. Amid internal struggles, they’ve made demands equivalent to total victory: the release of 300 Palestinians serving life sentences for attacks killing hundreds of Israeli civilians, plus 55 October 7th Nukhba operatives held without trial.” Yaari concluded, “No Israeli government could agree to free the perpetrators of the massacre.” Hamas further refuses demilitarization or leaving Gaza.