Israeli army reservists have begun reporting for duty as the country mobilises for an offensive to capture Gaza city, despite warnings of catastrophic consequences for hundreds of thousands of Palestinians.
Army chief Lt Gen Eyal Zamir told the reservists that Israel was aiming for “decisive victory” in its war on Gaza. “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.
One group of campaigners said hundreds of people were ignoring their call-ups in protest against the war, in which almost 100 Palestinians were reported to have been killed by Israeli attacks on Tuesday.
Israeli media reported the call-up was the largest summoning of reservists since the Gaza war began, with 40,000 ready to report for duty. The military said last month that 60,000 reserve orders were being issued.
Public broadcaster Kan reported fewer than expected are answering the call to serve, as fatigue takes hold among soldiers, many of whom have served for hundreds of days. There are widespread fears the military operation could endanger hostages held in the strip, despite polling consistently showing the majority of Israelis prefer a hostage deal over continued fighting with Hamas. There are also reports of stormy dissent from Israel's senior military leadership.
The Israeli army said on Tuesday troops would be provided with “combat equipment, personal gear and full tactical equipment”. It said they were training for fighting in both urban and open terrain.
In Gaza, the Palestinian news agency Wafa said 95 people were killed by Israeli forces on Tuesday, including seven children in an attack on Khan Younis. Health authorities said 13 more people had died of malnutrition.
Israel’s security cabinet approved the plan to capture Gaza city last month. Israel occupies about 75 per cent of the strip. Taking Gaza city would move the military significantly closer to full occupation, which critics say would represent an unsustainable drain on resources while intensifying international criticism.
The UN said hundreds of thousands of civilians live in areas facing invasion. Contradictory Israeli orders, a lack of space in areas the army has instructed people to move to, a worsening famine and fears of permanent displacement among residents have led aid agencies to believe many Palestinians will stay put.
Details of a stormy six-hour cabinet meeting emerged on Monday in Israeli media, at which one minister reportedly insulted the army's chief of staff, while Mr Netanyahu claimed US President Donald Trump wants a decisive military operation to defeat Hamas in Gaza and that a partial deal is “not on the table”.
Last week, Israeli outlet Channel 12 published part of a classified document circulated among military leadership, which said Israel had “made every possible mistake” in the operation so far, and had failed to achieve its objectives to defeat Hamas and rescue hostages. Israel’s military said it was investigating how the document was leaked and said it had met the targets of the operation.
Soldiers for Hostages, an Israeli activist group, said it had more than 360 people refusing to join the call-up in opposition to Mr Netanyahu’s policies.
“We refuse to take part in Netanyahu’s illegal war, and we view it as a patriotic duty to refuse and to demand accountability form our leaders,” spokesman Max Kresch said at a press conference in Tel Aviv, where he accused the Israeli leader of being “willing to sacrifice everything for his own political survival”.
“Netanyahu's continuing war of aggression needlessly puts our own hostages in danger and has wreaked havoc on the fabric of Israeli society, while at the same time killing, maiming and starving an entire population of Gazan civilians, actions that will leave a stain on Israel’s once good name and also endanger Jews globally.”
