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Chief of the General Staff of the Israel Defense Forces Eyal Zamir (C) conducts a field tour with senior commanders of the Israeli army in Syria on April 21, 2025. [Israel Defense Forces (IDF) – Anadolu Agency]
Israeli army Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir has sent a warning letter to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, saying there is a severe shortage of soldiers and an urgent need to extend compulsory military service for men to 36 months.
In the letter, which was also sent to the defence minister, Zamir painted a bleak picture of manpower levels in the Israeli army.
He said the shortage is not theoretical, but could cause real damage to the army’s readiness starting next year, due to ongoing security pressures.
Zamir also pointed to the lack of progress on legislation related to the exemption of ultra-Orthodox (Haredi) Jews from military service, alongside the urgent need to extend the length of compulsory service for conscripts.
He warned that delays in making legislative decisions are happening at what he described as a “security-sensitive” time, when “the army needs large numbers of soldiers to meet the demands of the current phase”.
Zamir added that the impact of the situation is expected to worsen soon, and “become even more serious starting from January 2027”.
He explicitly called for the immediate extension of compulsory military service for men to 36 months, stressing that the measure should also be applied retroactively.
This work by Middle East Monitor is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Genocide denier and Current UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer is quoted that he supports Zionism without qualification. He also confirms that UK air force support has been essential in Israel’s mass-murdering genocide. Includes URLs https://www.declassifieduk.org/keir-starmers-100-spy-flights-over-gaza-in-support-of-israel/ and https://youtu.be/O74hZCKKdpAKeir Starmer objects to criticism of the IDF. He asks how could anyone object to them starving people to death, forced marches like the Nazis did, bombing Gaza’s hospitals and universities, mass-murdering journalists, healthworkers and starving people queuing for food, killing and raping prisoners and murdering children. He calls for people to stop obstructing his genocide for Israel.Orcas discuss Genocide-supporting and complicit Zionists. Donald Trump, Keith Starmer, David Lammy, Rachel Reeves, Angela Rayner and Wes Streeting are acknowledged as evil genocide-complicit and supporting cnuts.
This work by Middle East Monitor is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Israel’s newly appointed armed forces chief, Lieutenant General Eyal Zamir (C), visits the Western Wall in the old city of Jerusalem on March 5, 2025. Menahem KAHANA / AFP / Getty Images]
Israeli Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir said on Sunday that the Israeli army must be prepared to shift swiftly from defensive operations to a large-scale offensive aimed at occupying territory beyond the so-called “Yellow Line” in the Gaza Strip.
Zamir’s remarks came during a visit to Rafah in southern Gaza, according to a statement issued by the Israeli army. Zamir conducted a situational assessment with senior commanders, including Southern Command chief Yaniv Asor, Gaza Division commander Barak Hiram and the heads of all brigades operating in the Strip.
The army said Zamir toured the Rafah area, where he reviewed operational developments across all fronts and stressed the need to maintain defensive readiness, eliminate threats and remain prepared for “a rapid transition to offensive operations”.
Zamir stated that the Israeli army currently “controls more than 50% of the Gaza Strip, without controlling its population”, adding that the Yellow Line functions as a “line of encirclement and control”. He said military efforts continue to prevent Hamas from regrouping, including maintaining control over border crossings and areas under Israeli oversight.
“In parallel with the current operational course, and if necessary, we must be prepared to move quickly to a large-scale offensive to occupy areas in the Gaza Strip on the other side of the Yellow Line,” Zamir said.
The chief of staff added that Israeli forces are continuing efforts to clear areas along the Yellow Line and eliminate remaining resistance pockets, while the Southern Command works to destroy “terrorist infrastructure”, including underground tunnels.
Zamir reiterated that Israel is committed to ensuring that “Hamas rule will not remain on the other side of the border”, saying the army’s objective is to dismantle Hamas and disarm the Gaza Strip “whether through agreements or military action”.
He also noted that the military has continued its investigation into the failures of the 7 October attack, saying he established an expert committee upon taking office to ensure “a profound process of learning and understanding”.
“We are not afraid of the consequences,” Zamir said. “All of this is for the sake of advancing the army and improving its future performance.”
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Keir Starmer objects to criticism of the IDF. He asks how could anyone object to them starving people to death, forced marches like the Nazis did, bombing Gaza’s hospitals and universities, mass-murdering journalists, healthworkers and starving people queuing for food, killing and raping prisoners and murdering children. He calls for people to stop obstructing his genocide for Israel.Vote Labour for Genocide.Orcas discuss Genocide-supporting and complicit Zionists. Donald Trump, Keith Starmer, David Lammy, Rachel Reeves, Angela Rayner and Wes Streeting are acknowledged as evil genocide-complicit and supporting cnuts.
This work by Middle East Monitor is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Chief of the General Staff of the Israel Defense Forces Eyal Zamir (C) conducts a field tour with senior commanders of the Israeli army. [Israel Defense Forces (IDF) – Anadolu Agency]
Israeli Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir on Tuesday set out the phases of a plan to fully occupy Gaza City, despite indirect negotiations on a possible ceasefire and prisoner swap deal between Israel and the Palestinian group Hamas, Anadolu reports.
According to Israel’s public broadcaster KAN, Zamir endorsed the plan on Sunday, with Defense Minister Israel Katz expected to give his approval on Tuesday.
Earlier this month, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government adopted a broader proposal to gradually reoccupy the entire Gaza Strip, starting with Gaza City.
The plan envisions forcing nearly 1 million Palestinians southward, encircling the city, and carrying out ground raids into residential districts.
On Aug. 11, as part of the first steps, the Israeli army launched a wide assault on the Zeitoun neighborhood in southeastern Gaza City. Witnesses said the operation involved blowing up homes with explosive-laden robots, artillery fire, indiscriminate shooting, and mass displacement.
According to the Israeli outlet Walla, Zamir’s plan incorporates “key principles and lessons” aimed at making the occupation more effective.
It also calls for reinforcing army units in northern Gaza to pave the way for the city’s takeover, in line with Israel’s campaign to tighten military pressure on Hamas and capture areas under its control. Most of the tasks, the report noted, would be assigned to regular forces.
The Israeli preparations to occupy the city come despite the ongoing ceasefire negotiations, with Hamas having accepted a proposal brokered by Egypt and Qatar for a 60-day halt to hostilities. The group has repeatedly voiced readiness to free Israeli captives in exchange for an end to the war, a full withdrawal of Israeli forces, and the release of Palestinian prisoners.
Israel has killed more than 62,000 Palestinians in Gaza since October 2023. The military campaign has devastated the enclave, which is facing famine.
Last November, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.
Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war on the enclave.
This work by Middle East Monitor is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Genocide denier and Current UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer is quoted that he supports Zionism without qualification. He also confirms that UK air force support has been essential in Israel’s mass-murdering genocide. Includes URLs https://www.declassifieduk.org/keir-starmers-100-spy-flights-over-gaza-in-support-of-israel/ and https://youtu.be/O74hZCKKdpAUK Labour Party government ministers Keir Starmer, Angela Rayner and Rachel Reeves explain that they are partners complicit in Israel’s Gaza genocide. The UK has provided Israel with arms, military and air force support. They explain that they don’t do gas chambers but do do forced marches, starvation, destroy hospitals, mass-murders of journalists and healthcare workers.Vote Labour for Genocide.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks during an event at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel in Jerusalem on July 27, 2025. (Photo: Gil Cohen-Magen/AFP via Getty Images)
“They’re talking about occupying areas that are packed with so many people,” said one Palestinian civilian. “If they do that, there will be incalculable killing.”
Ahead of a meeting with his security ministers, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu confirmed once again Thursday that his government plans to take control of the entire Gaza Strip—”a direct assault on international law,” as one group said this week, and one that his own military leaders have opposed.
In an interview with Fox News, Netanyahu was asked whether his government aims to take over all of Gaza, 75% of which it now claims to control, as officials have stated this week.
“We intend to,” the prime minister said, saying his country would take control of the enclave “in order to assure 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 convened a security meeting after the interview, seeking approval for his plan to expand Israel’s offensive in Gaza to areas in the central part of the territory where hostages are believed to be held, which the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) have largely avoided since it began bombarding Gaza in October 2023.
The assault has forcibly displaced nearly the entire population of 2.1 million Palestinians, killed more than 61,000, and injured more than 150,000 as Israel’s near-total blockade has pushed the enclave toward famine and starved to death nearly 200 people, including at least 96 children.
The prime minister did not delve into specifics about the plan, but claimed Israel does not “want to govern” Gaza.
“We don’t want to be there as a governing body,” he said. “We want to hand it over to Arab forces.”
IDF Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir has expressed opposition to the proposal, and three military officials toldThe New York Times Thursday that the military would prefer a new cease-fire deal rather than intensifying fighting.
Cease-fire talks between Hamas and Israel have recently hit a deadlock.
Setting up a system of occupation in Gaza like the one Israel controls in the West Bank would take “up to five years of sustained combat,” officials told the Times.
Muhammad Shehada, a visiting fellow at the European Council on Foreign Relations, explained how Netanyahu and his Cabinet, including Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, likely plan to carry out “the final phase of the genocide” in Gaza, having recently set aside funds “for winning the war” in the enclave.
“Israel will move to annihilate the three remaining areas that haven’t been wiped out fully yet: Gaza City, Deir Al-Balah, and the central refugee camps (i.e. Nuseirat),” said Shehada. “Those three areas have been heavily bombed, invaded by the IDF, shelled nonstop but they have not been depopulated and fully razed to the ground like Rafah, Khan Younis, Jabaliya, Beit Hanoun, etc.”
Netanyahu just declared plans to fully occupy all of Gaza, 2 days after his Finance Minister quietly allocated 3 billion shekels for a Gaza "security box"
This is the final phase of the genocide! Israel will move to annihilate the 3 remaining areas that haven't been wiped out… pic.twitter.com/q12l76tXRZ
Palestinian-American analyst Yousef Munayyer denounced Netanyahu’s stated plan as “stupid, criminal, and horrifying.”
Palestinians have expressed fears this week that the latest Israeli proposal would kill far more civilians in Gaza as the IDF moves into areas where hundreds of thousands of people have been forced to move.
“They’re talking about occupying areas that are packed with so many people,” Mukhlis al-Masri, a 34-year-old Palestinian who fled to Khan Younis from his home in northern Gaza, told the Times. “If they do that, there will be incalculable killing. The situation will be more dangerous than anyone can imagine.”
Mairav Zonszein, a senior analyst on Israel at the International Crisis Group, said Netanyahu’s comments on Thursday included “a slip, but a revealing one”: that Israel wants to “enable the population to be free of Gaza” following the IDF’s decimation of the enclave.
Netanyahu said "enable the population to be free of Gaza." That clearly a slip, but a revealing one, so far as Israel's destruction of Gaza and its people has indeed dislocated them from life in Gaza. https://t.co/8yBlVGeRlX
“Netanyahu’s threat to ‘take control’ of all of Gaza is like his threat in 2020 to annex the West Bank,” said Zonszein. “Israel already controls and destroyed most of Gaza, and already de facto annexed the West Bank. So while Palestinians will suffer more, Israeli strategy hasn’t changed one bit.”
Keir Starmer objects to criticism of the IDF. He asks how could anyone object to them starving people to death, forced marches like the Nazis did, bombing Gaza’s hospitals and universities,mass-murdering journalists, healthworkers and starving people queuing for food, killing and raping prisoners and murdering children. He calls for people to stop obstructing his genocide for Israel.
