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THE SINISTER TRUTH BEHIND NETANYAHU’S GAZA CITY INVASION – HIS
GREATEST GAMBLE SINCE OCTOBER 7  
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Amos Harel
September 17, 2025
Haaretz
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_ The man who's leading Israel into a deepening war in the Strip –
amid slim chances of victory – is a failed, isolated and hounded
leader who is determined to hold onto power by all means. _

Palestinians fleeing Gaza City arrive in central Gaza, September 8,
2025, credit: Ali Hassan/Flash90

 

The Israel Defense Forces began its ground invasion into the heart of
Gaza City on Tuesday. The widescale operation – the current stage of
which is proceeding after considerable disagreements and delays –
has the participation of two regular army divisions at this stage, and
will be joined later by another division. (Two more divisions are
deployed defensively).

Although masses of Palestinians continue fleeing southward
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the city toward the central Gaza Strip, there are still hundreds of
thousands of civilians remaining in Gaza City. Despite officials at
professional levels in the defense establishment generally opposing
the operation, and despite major skepticism among the Israeli public,
there is currently no effective protest against this dangerous step
that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is taking. This is perhaps his
biggest gamble since the beginning of the war nearly two years ago.

Military forces are advancing relatively slowly at this stage and are
doing so very cautiously. By comparison, when the IDF entered the Gaza
Strip at the end of October 2023 following the massacre in Israeli
border communities, the units moved quickly, deep on the ground, even
though Hamas' defensive preparations at the time were more difficult
to crack and penetrate than they are now.

IDF Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir, who argued with Netanyahu about the
operation up to the last moment and continued unsuccessfully to press
for the signing of a new hostage deal, is dictating the pace of the
advance and the manner in which the units operate. It's a grinding war
carried out slowly and cautiously rather than storming in.

Zamir, who on Tuesday went in with the maneuvering forces, again
defined the goals of the operation
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a restrained and limited fashion. "The mission to strike Hamas deeper
and to defeat the Gaza City brigade rests on your shoulders," he told
the commanders. That's a far cry from Netanyahu's decisive commitments
to destroy Hamas without a trace. It's doubtful that Netanyahu is
enamored by Zamir's insistence over the past two days that returning
the hostages is the most important task and that the army needs to
exercise care to ensure they aren't harmed.

On that provision, the chief of staff can promise, but he isn't
convinced that he can deliver. In the latest security cabinet
consultations and other limited settings, Zamir has actually
underlined the lack of intelligence regarding the living hostages'
location and the fact that Hamas is liable to use a few of them as
human shields in connection with the IDF's entry into Gaza City. He
also raised the horrible scenario in which Hamas is liable to decide
to execute hostages
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a way of terrorizing Israel and as revenge for the adventurous
operation that Netanyahu ordered last week – the attempted
assassination in the Qatari capital, Doha, of Hamas' leadership
abroad.

The hostages' fate

There's a clear, straight line between all of Netanyahu's recent
pronouncements and decisions: rejecting the American proposals for a
new hostage deal; the bombardment in Qatar, which enabled the emirate
to organize a show of regional support and shock, with the
participation of Iran and its Sunni neighbors (most of which are
actually hostile to it); the insistence on entering Gaza City despite
the opposition of most of the heads of the defense establishment –
as well as Monday's crazy speech in which he announced that he would
turn Israel into a super Sparta that would establish a self-sufficient
economy in Israel in light of Europe's growing animosity.

Netanyahu has long ceased to show interest in the fate of the
hostages. His remarks contain no show of sentiment toward them, but
rather just declarations devoid of content and a determined decision
to pursue an endless war, because stopping it would endanger his
continued political survival.

Netanyahu was entirely impervious to all the attempts by senior
members of the defense establishment to divert him from his decision
to invade Gaza City
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He has remained insistent on taking advantage of the backing that U.S.
President Donald Trump is still giving him for the operation.

Efforts by senior members of the Trump administration to advance a new
version of the plan proposed by presidential envoy Steve Witkoff –
involving the freeing of half the living hostages, perhaps even around
Rosh Hashana next week – hasn't been accorded any response for the
time being. It's hard not to feel a sense of identification with the
cries of the hostage families, who see Netanyahu ordering the Gaza
City's capture despite the clear and immediate danger to the lives of
their family members.

Trump has again threatened Hamas with hell to pay if it murders
hostages, but as a practical matter, they're empty threats by a man
who isn't holding a real stick toward the terrorist leaders who have
been hiding for almost two years in tunnels. Netanyahu isn't even
bothering to threaten. The killing of hostages by Hamas would actually
hand him an excuse to expand the military operation and, like
his coalition partners on the messianic right
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aspire toward the complete occupation of the Gaza Strip and the
expulsion of its population. That's also what he's hearing among his
own family, which is a source of major worry for senior members of the
defense establishment.

Officials in the army are also bothered by the losses among the
troops, and it's rather clear that there will soon be major killings
of Palestinian civilians, an issue that is barely being addressed in
Israel's public discourse but is prompting understandable rage toward
Israel around the world.

And on Monday, Netanyahu made a fool's bargain
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The drop in the stock market and the worried response of economists
and businesspeople caught him unprepared. Hence, the many statements
that he has been releasing since in an effort to calm the markets. Was
he just coming up with excuses for Israeli citizens in light of the
dismal reality or were we getting a genuine glimpse at his apocalyptic
vision for the country?

One way or another, the picture we're getting is highly concerning.
The man who's leading Israel into a deepening war in the Strip –
amid slim chances of victory – is a failed, isolated and hounded
leader who is determined to hold onto power by all means.

More articles
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by Amos Harel.

Haaretz
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is an independent daily newspaper with a broadly liberal outlook both
on domestic issues and on international affairs. It has a journalistic
staff of some 330 reporters, writers and editors. The paper is perhaps
best known for its Op-ed page, where its senior columnists - among
them some of Israel's leading commentators and analysts - reflect on
current events. Haaretz plays an important role in the shaping of
public opinion and is read with care in government and decision-making
circles. Get a digital subscription [[link removed]]
to Haaretz.

* Israel
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* Benjamin Netanyahu
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* Gaza
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* Gaza City
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