40 thousand 'Israeli' reservists report for duty: Hebrew media
Tens of thousands of 'Israeli' reservists reported for duty on Tuesday as the military prepared for a new offensive to seize Gaza City, deepening tensions between Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and 'Israel’s' top commander, General Eyal Zamir.
'Israeli' Army Radio said 40,000 reservists were called up as part of the expanded operation. The security cabinet, chaired by Netanyahu, approved the plan last month to push into Gaza City.
'Israel' claims it currently controls around 75 percent of the Gaza Strip.
Cabinet Tensions
A cabinet meeting late on Sunday exposed deep divisions. Ministers pushed Netanyahu to accelerate the offensive, while Zamir allegedly urged them to pursue a ceasefire deal with Hamas. He warned that an assault on Gaza City would endanger captives and further strain an already overstretched army, according to four ministers and two military officials present.
Zamir has repeatedly clashed with Netanyahu and his ministers. On August 20, Netanyahu said he had ordered a faster timetable to take Gaza City, but the following day military officials said the operation could not begin for two months. They cited risks to captives.
Surveys suggest many reservists are unhappy with the cabinet’s plans, some openly accusing the government of lacking a clear post-war strategy, benchmarks for victory, or a coherent approach to securing the release of captives.
Zamir’s alleged position
Despite his criticism of the cabinet, Zamir told reservists at one base on Tuesday that the army was preparing for “nothing less than decisive victory” and would not stop the war until that was achieved. “We are preparing for the continuation of the war; we are going to increase and enhance the strikes of our operation, and that is why we called you,” he said. “We have already begun the ground operation in Gaza, make no mistake. We are already entering places we have never entered before.”
At Sunday’s meeting, Zamir allegedly warned ministers that seizing Gaza City could drag 'Israel' into ruling the enclave. “You are heading to a military government,” he said. “Understand the implications.”
Channel 12 reported that Zamir told cabinet members, “There is a framework on the table, [and] we must take it,” allegedly referring to a ceasefire–captive release proposal approved by Hamas. Channel 13 attributed the same remark instead to Mossad Chief David Barnea, who has been leading indirect negotiations.
