As the third anniversary of the October 7 massacre approaches, Israeli defense officials increasingly believe that there is no alternative to another ground maneuver in the Gaza Strip that would include the conquest of Gaza City, Walla reported.

According to the report, the assessment stems from the understanding that despite ongoing diplomatic efforts, Hamas is rebuilding its military strength and reconstructing terrorist infrastructure.

A defense official quoted in the report said that most Hamas commanders, members of its military wing and terrorists are currently hiding in Gaza City, and that the assessment is that dismantling Hamas will require taking control of the area.

In mid-May of this year, U.S. envoy to the Gaza Strip Nikolay Mladenov made extensive behind-the-scenes efforts to advance U.S. President Donald Trump’s points-based plan, which includes demilitarizing the Gaza Strip of weapons and transferring authority from Hamas to the Board of Peace.

However, Israeli defense officials soon understood that Hamas intended to drag out the process, refuse to disarm, refuse to relinquish control and, more seriously, rebuild its military wing. As a result, it was decided to advance the plan for renewed fighting in Gaza City.

That same month, Southern Command chief Maj. Gen. Yaniv Asor presented IDF Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir with a plan for a return to fighting in Gaza City, including plans for the evacuation and relocation of the population to new humanitarian zones.

The situation has grown worse in recent weeks after Hamas’s military wing grew increasingly confident following a visit by Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner with Hamas leader Khalil al-Hayya, who was one of the architects of the October 7 massacre.

According to assessments by the security establishment, Hamas began launching kites that landed inside Israel as a preliminary step toward incorporating incendiary materials or explosives. The IDF did not rush to respond, but when the military and Shin Bet assessed that the next stage would involve the use of drones against IDF forces, along with the discovery of infrastructure for carrying out attacks in the Gaza Strip, it was decided to return to the policy of targeted eliminations.

Now, with that policy at its height and more than 20 terrorists eliminated in recent weeks, and with it clear to all that Hamas will not genuinely disarm in a manner acceptable to Israel, security officials assess that there will be no alternative to another ground operation in the Gaza Strip following the Israeli elections and the U.S. midterm elections.

Security officials have warned the political echelon that Hamas is not only rebuilding its strength in the Gaza Strip and organizing infrastructure for attacks against IDF soldiers, but is also establishing infrastructure for attacks against Israeli interests in Yehuda and Shomron and around the world.

For that reason, the Southern Command chief has been instructed to prepare for a large-scale ground operation involving several divisions operating simultaneously. This comes amid an understanding among senior security officials that the current reality — in which Hamas continues rebuilding while the IDF attacks from the air — cannot continue indefinitely if Israel is to create a new security reality in which the organization no longer poses a threat to the country.

(YWN Israel Desk—Jerusalem)