Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has instructed the Israeli military to expand its control over the Gaza Strip to 70 percent, Israeli media reported after airing recorded remarks. He told a crowd that Israel currently controls about 60 percent of the territory and that his directive is to reach 70 percent, adding that operations would proceed in stages and that the 70 percent goal is the immediate target.
Aid organisations were shown maps in mid-March indicating that Israeli control had already extended roughly 11 percentage points beyond the so-called Yellow Line set under a US-brokered ceasefire in October 2025. That informal expansion meant Israel controlled about 64 percent of Gaza rather than the 53 percent demarcated by the ceasefire line.
Humanitarian agencies say the occupation and ongoing operations have left roughly two thirds of Gaza inaccessible to Palestinians. A further seizure of territory would compress about two million people into a smaller area, exacerbating already dire living conditions after nearly two years of conflict.
Despite the nominal truce reached last year, air strikes and other hostilities have continued. An Al Jazeera tally covering October through April counted at least 2,400 Israeli violations of the ceasefire. On Thursday, Palestinian health authorities reported that an Israeli air raid killed at least ten people, including four children, and wounded 20 others.
The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs describes Gaza’s humanitarian situation as critical. Displaced families are sheltering in overcrowded tents, schools or damaged buildings. Clean water supplies are scarce, waste collection remains poor, and the spread of disease-carrying pests is increasing. Many neighbourhoods are still dangerous, with frequent air strikes, shelling and shootings in or near residential areas.
Nickolay Mladenov, the high representative overseeing the Board of Peace for Gaza, warned the UN Security Council that the enclave’s deteriorating status quo risks becoming permanent. He urged the international community to press Hamas to disarm and to insist that Israel uphold commitments made under the October ceasefire, including ending killings and easing restrictions on humanitarian access.
The war that began after the October 7, 2023 attacks by Hamas and other armed groups in southern Israel has resulted in a heavy Palestinian death toll. Official tallies cited in reporting say more than 72,775 Palestinians have been killed. The Israeli military continues to enforce strict security measures, and conflict monitors report intensified bombardment since February, linked to broader regional developments, with some assessments indicating a roughly 35 percent increase in attacks since that period.
Netanyahu’s directive to increase territorial control heightens concerns among humanitarian organisations and international officials about the shrinking space for civilians and the prospect of a prolonged, entrenched division of Gaza.