Tens of thousands of Israel Defense Forces (IDF) reservists reported for duty on Tuesday in the largest call-up since the start of the Gaza war in October 2023.
The move marks the first stage of a controversial Israeli offensive in Gaza City, where Israeli forces waged fierce urban warfare with Hamas in the early stages of the war. Israel currently holds about 75 per cent of the Gaza Strip.
The reservists will undergo training and preparation in the coming days, and some will replace regular forces stationed in Israel’s north and the West Bank, freeing up these soldiers for the assault on Gaza City.
The operation requires the forced transfer of more than 800,000 residents away from the combat zone, many of whom have already been displaced on numerous occasions.
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Residents were again warned on Tuesday by the IDF to move south to the sprawling tent encampment in the Muwasi area, where they were told it will be safe and where there will be regular supplies of humanitarian aid.
Some neighbourhoods such as Zeitoun, Shejaiya and Jabalya are emptying already, but the Hamas-run interior ministry has urged residents “not to yield to the occupation’s threats and intimidation” and remain in their homes as long as possible.
Humanitarian groups have warned that Muwasi is already filled with nearly half a million displaced Palestinians and the expected flood of new refugees in the coming weeks will stretch aid, sanitation and health services to breaking point.
More reservists will be drafted in the coming months, and the IDF is planning for a campaign lasting into 2026 and aims to destroy what it describes as a Hamas tunnel network, after the city is captured.
Most reservists have already served hundreds of days since the start of the almost two-year war, and they are now required to serve an additional three months, with the possibility of a one-month extension depending on how the fighting develops.
The IDF is not releasing data but there are numerous reports that the number of reservists refusing to serve is at an all-time high. Many have told their officers that the strain on family life, the workplace or studies has reached breaking point. Others cite opposition to this specific operation, believing it will result in hostages being killed by their Hamas captors.
Many combat units have been forced to recruit fighters from outside their unit, scrambling to fill the ranks.
The far-right ministers in the coalition have made it increasingly clear over recent weeks that defeating Hamas is more of a priority than saving the hostages.
The senior military echelon, led by IDF chief of staff Lieut Gen Eyal Zamir, along with the heads of the intelligence agencies, told the security cabinet that the operation to occupy Gaza City would likely fail to destroy Hamas while leading to many Israeli casualties, both among soldiers and the 20 hostages still believed to be alive.
Qatar warned on Tuesday that Israel’s plan to seize Gaza City endangers everyone, including the hostages. Qatar and Egypt mediated a ceasefire plan that was accepted by Hamas more than two weeks ago but Israel has not even responded to the plan.
Israeli prime minister Binyamin Netanyahu insists that only a deal that will free all 48 hostages in one go and lead to the disarming of Hamas is relevant.
The conflict began on October 7th, 2023, when Hamas-led gunmen burst into southern Israel, killing 1,200 people and taking 251 hostages.
Israel’s military offensive against Hamas has since killed at least 63,000 Palestinians, the Hamas-run Gaza health ministry has said.
