IDF Expands Control To About 70% Of Gaza Strip As Hamas Refuses Peace Plan

Israeli forces expanded their operational control to about 70% of the Gaza Strip, rising from around 60% at the start of the ceasefire, as Hamas refused to implement the 14-point Gaza Peace Plan and the IDF prepared for a possible resumption of fighting.

The Jerusalem Post said Southern Command chief Maj.-Gen. Yaniv Asor oversaw three parallel efforts in Gaza, including addressing threats along the Yellow Line, expanding Israeli operational control and defensive infrastructure, and preparing for a possible future campaign against Hamas while shaping the Rafah area under a proposed US-backed "green city" initiative.

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All Israel News reported that the IDF was entrenching control along the Yellow Line and preparing plans for a US-backed civilian zone in the Rafah area, citing Walla News for the proposal.

In the same reporting, a security source told Walla that "It is possible that the scope of operational control in Palestinian territory will increase in the coming months" while Hamas allegedly dragged its feet, entrenching itself and preparing for war.

The Jerusalem Post added that defense officials believed the area under Israeli control could grow further in the coming months as Hamas delayed ceasefire implementation while rebuilding capabilities and preparing for renewed fighting.

Israeli reporting described a change in rules of engagement along the Yellow Line, with officers telling Ynet that the battalion commander’s guidance shifted from a “shoot-to-kill” target to a suspect-arrest procedure.

All Israel News quoted officers saying, "until now, the battalion commander would brief us that any adult crossing the Yellow Line was a 'shoot-to-kill' target," and added that the instruction changed to a suspect-arrest procedure that ends, at most, with shooting at the knees.

Al Jazeera

The same source said the IDF rejected allegations about soldiers’ ability to open fire, stressing that "IDF soldiers operating in the Gaza Strip are authorized—and required—to remove any threat" while avoiding harm to uninvolved persons as much as possible.

The Jerusalem Post described the daily assessments along the Yellow Line as designed to detect preparations for attacks, monitor terrorist operatives and commanders, and respond to immediate threats requiring ground or air strikes.

It also said Hamas allegedly sent civilians toward Israeli positions to provoke contact with troops, while the IDF and Shin Bet maintained a list of targets involved in the October 7 massacre and hostage-holding.

Alongside expanding control, Israeli officials and reporting tied the next phase to Rafah, where the proposed US-backed "green city" initiative is intended to create an area free of Hamas’ presence to move reconstruction forward without interference.

The Jerusalem Post said the "green city" plan would provide facilities for approximately 50,000 Palestinians in its initial phase, with security screening before residents would be allowed to reside in the zone.

All Israel News described the plan as a reconstruction effort near the southern city of Rafah dubbed “the green city,” and said it was intended to draw civilians to the area and motivate similar programs.

Al-Jazeera Net reported that Netanyahu boasted that Israel’s army currently controls about 70% of Gaza and argued that the aim is to choke Hamas, while citing that Israel occupies about 255 square kilometers out of Gaza’s total 365 square kilometers.

Al-Jazeera Net also cited Palestinian Health Ministry data saying that as of Wednesday the death toll from the Israeli war rose to 73,041 dead and 173,402 wounded since October 7, 2023, and that since the ceasefire on October 10 last year the Israeli army killed 1,029 Palestinians and wounded 3,294.