Siege on northern Gaza: The 'Generals Plan' for the war

The 'Commanders and Reserve Soldiers' Forum presented to the public the "Generals' Plan" to defeat Hamas, which was written at the initiative of Major General (Res.) Giora Eiland with the assistance of Major General (Res.) Gershon Hacohen, Brigadier General Dedi Simchi (Res.), and other senior officers.

The plan is based on the assumption that the current strategy of conducting raids in Gaza is not effective enough to overwhelm Hamas and to put sufficient pressure on the terrorist organization to return the 101 hostages it still holds.

According to the plan, the entire area north of the Netzarim. Corridor, i.e. Gaza City with all its neighborhoods, would become a closed military area in which the entire population, estimated by the army to be approximately 250,000 people, would be required to leave immediately.

After a week in which the population will be given the opportunity to evacuate, a full military siege would be imposed on the area, leaving the terrorists in Gaza City with the choice - to surrender or die. The forum stated that the outline complies with the rules of international law because it allows the population to evacuate from the combat zone before the siege is imposed.

According to them, Israel should allocate humanitarian residence complexes for the residents and impose a siege on the northern Gaza Strip. "We mark two fairly safe exit corridors that will be secured by IDF forces. Those who leave will receive food and water. But in a week the entire territory of the northern Gaza Strip will become a military zone, and as far as we're concerned, no supply will enter this military zone."

Gen. Eiland stated that "therefore 5,000 terrorists who are in this area would in this situation either surrender or starve to death."

He elaborated on the reasons he claims led Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar to agree to the deal in November. "The same deal that was presented already in November 2023 was a good hostage deal, certainly in view of what is happening now. Israel received ten live hostages every day."

"Why was this deal so successful? The reason is very simple. Up until that moment, two supply trucks a day entered Gaza and Hamas began to realize that a lack of supplies to Gaza would create a heavy supply shortage in Gaza, which would both have a strong impact on its fighting ability and that of its people, and would also create a great deal of resentment , anger and irritation of a hungry and angry population. This is the thing that for Hamas was more important than anything else and therefore it demanded that as part of that deal Israel increase the number of trucks from two to two hundred," he said.

"Why didn't we go back to two trucks, which was the reality before that agreement?" Eiland wondered and answered that the State of Israel had given up the lever of pressure on the issue. "We gave up on this point. Dictators like Sinwar are not afraid of military pressure, they are afraid of two other things, a governing alternative and the existence of an angry mob that can topple them from power."

"The reality today in Gaza is that Sinwar is really not under pressure. There is a complete takeover by Hamas of the supply trucks here, and therefore this combination that there are a lot of supplies and some level of quiet is created in Gaza. The fact that Hamas is seen as the one who distributes the supplies means that this war is very difficult to conclude and this loss of the entire northern part of the Strip is the thing that, from Sinwar's point of view, will create real pressure on him. He will also understand that when this happens in the north of the Strip, it can happen again in Rafah and other places.

"And from that moment we will also see the pressure on Sinwar increasing," Eiland said and explained that Sinwar "will understand that this will also be the next steps. If we do not do this, we will not see the three goals of the war achieved, not rescuing the hostages, not removing Hamas from power and not the reality that Gaza in the future no longer threatens Israel."