Netanyahu orders the army to capture 70 percent of the Gaza Strip | Israel-Palestine War News

The Israeli army has already increased its control in Gaza by 11 percent beyond the ‘Yellow Line’, beyond the ‘ceasefire’.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has instructed the Israeli army to increase its control of the Gaza Strip to 70 percent, according to comments broadcast by Israel.

“Right now, we control 60 percent of the Gaza Strip… and my order is to get to… 70 percent,” Netanyahu said in footage captured by Channel 12 and broadcast on Thursday.

When someone in the audience shouted for Israel to occupy the besieged area, the Prime Minister said “we are moving in an orderly manner”, according to The Times of Israel. “Initially 70 percent,” he said without denying that a full takeover could take place. “We’ll start with this.”

The Israeli military has quietly sent maps to organizations showing that it had already expanded its forces to about 11 percent beyond the so-called “Yellow Line” areas occupied by Israeli forces. That line was accepted in the United States-brokered “to stop the fire” in October 2025. This means that it controlled 64 percent of the Palestinian territories, instead of 53 percent.

Due to the occupation of the Israeli army, the Palestinians cannot reach two-thirds of Gaza. Recapturing the region would force two million of them, already living in dire conditions, into a much smaller territory after enduring two years of genocidal war.

Despite the chaos that came last year, Israeli bombardment of Gaza continues on an almost daily basis. Al Jazeera’s ratings from October to April to calculate at least 2,400 violations of Israel. Earlier on Thursday, health officials said that an Israeli plane had been shot down to be killed at least 10 people, including four children, and injured 20 others.

According to the United Nations Office for Humanitarian Affairs’ (OCHA) recently reportThe humanitarian situation in Gaza remains dire, with displaced families living in overcrowded tents, schools or destroyed homes. Clean water is in short supply, and poor waste management is increasing risks, including the spread of rodents and insects. Many areas in Gaza also remain dangerous, with frequent airstrikes, shelling and shootings taking place in or near residential areas, the report said.

Last week, the representative in charge of the US-founded Gaza Peace Council, Nickolay Mladenov, he warned that the damage done in the enclave makes it “permanent”. Speaking to the UN Security Council, he urged the international organization to use “all possible means” to force Hamas to disarm and force Israel to fulfill its commitments under the October ceasefire, pointing to the continued killings and restrictions on the movement of people.

The war that Israel launched after the October 7, 2023, invasion of southern Israel by Hamas and other Palestinian armed groups has killed more than 72,775 Palestinians. The Israeli army continues to maintain tight security, and hundreds have been killed in the past seven months. Conflict monitors warn that since the US-Israel war on Iran began in February, Israel Bombings in Gaza have increased.