Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Thursday that he has instructed the IDF to expand its control over Gaza and take hold of 70% of the territory as Israel continues its campaign against Hamas.
Speaking at a conference in Yehuda and Shomron, Netanyahu said Israel is steadily increasing its control over the Strip.
“We are now in 60% of the territory of the Gaza Strip. We were at 50%. We moved to 60%,” Netanyahu said. “My directive is to move to — take it step by step — first of all 70. Let’s start with that.”
As he spoke, members of the audience reportedly called on him to take control of the entire Gaza Strip.
The remarks signal a significant expansion of Israel’s military objectives in Gaza. According to maps previously distributed by the IDF to international aid organizations, Israeli forces were already controlling approximately 64% of Gaza as of late April.
Under the October 2025 ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas, Israeli forces had withdrawn to a demarcation line known as the “yellow line,” leaving them in control of roughly 53% of the territory.
Hamas this week accused Israel of gradually expanding beyond that line and changing realities on the ground.
In a statement Tuesday, the terror group charged that Israel’s actions “constitute an explicit and ongoing undermining of the ceasefire agreement” and represent “an exposed attempt to impose new facts on the ground by force.”
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