ISTANBUL

Israel's Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir approved on Sunday a plan to move to the “next phase” in the Gaza war, vowing intensified strikes on Gaza City amid a push for reoccupying the territory.

“Today we are approving the plan for the next phase of the war,” a military statement quoted Zamir as saying during a field tour in the Gaza Strip.

Zamir claimed that the Israeli army achieved the objectives of the Operation “Gideon’s Chariots,” a ground offensive that was launched in May to expand occupation of the enclave and fully evacuate Palestinians from northern Gaza.

“We will maintain the momentum of Operation ‘Gideon’s Chariots’ while focusing on Gaza City,” the army chief said. “We will continue to strike until the decisive defeat of Hamas.”

Last week, Israel’s Security Cabinet endorsed Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s plan to fully reoccupy Gaza, triggering international outrage and domestic protests that warned it amounted to a “death sentence” for Israeli captives held in the enclave.

Zamir said that the reoccupation plan came as part of a long-term plan aimed at “striking all components of the axis, and first and foremost Iran.”

The plan envisions starting with the takeover of Gaza City by displacing nearly 1 million residents to the south, surrounding the city, and then carrying out raids into its neighborhoods. A second phase would involve retaking refugee camps in central Gaza, much of which has already been reduced to rubble.

Israel has killed more than 61,900 Palestinians in Gaza since October 2023. The military campaign has devastated the enclave and brought it to the verge of famine.

Last November, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.

Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war on the enclave.