Israel widens Gaza control, plans more ops

Israel has expanded its control of Gazan territory and is considering more intense military action, further squeezing the war-torn enclave. The army advanced beyond the agreed temporary boundary and now controls 60% of Gaza, finance minister Bezalel Smotrich said this week. That figure was corroborated by another Israeli official and a foreign diplomat involved in monitoring the ceasefire. The original boundary gave Israel control of 53%.

"We are advancing and moving the yellow line and deepening the destruction of infrastructures," Smotrich said. It's been seven months since US President Donald Trump announced the Gaza ceasefire. The truce was to begin the area's rehabilitation following two years of Israeli strikes that killed tens of thousands of people and reduced vast sections to rubble. But with the wars in Iran and Lebanon shifting the focus away from Gaza, it's been sinking deeper into misery. Hamas isn't disarming, Israel is stepping up air strikes, and hundreds have been killed since the ceasefire went into effect.



Smotrich said Hamas's ability to re-arm is severely limited, but the group must be defeated. "We shall have to decide at what moment we'll go back to fighting in Gaza, and in what configuration," he said. Israel is weighing further air strikes to keep Hamas from rebuilding, a senior aide to Netanyahu said. That would likely entail district-by-district attacks.

This is a Bloomberg story.