Military planners agree on a key principle: regular brigades will be prioritized over reservists for the operation, given their higher readiness and recent combat experience in dense urban terrain. The real number of reservists is also far lower than publicized; though reports suggested 250,000, defense officials say about 74,000 are currently serving, with perhaps several tens of thousands more to be called up.
Yet the greater obstacle lies on the humanitarian front. Roughly three-quarters of Gaza is already in ruins, making the transfer of civilians southward extraordinarily difficult. Hamas is expected to resist evacuations, which would deprive it of using civilians as human shields.
Within the defense establishment, there is broad agreement: the chances of rescuing hostages alive through a military offensive are slim. “Any suggestion otherwise is misleading and clouds decision-making,” a senior officer said. This sobering reality collides with public expectations, but commanders insist strategy must be based on achievable objectives.
Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir toured the front Sunday with senior commanders, approving operational plans for the coming phase. “We will continue to change the security reality,” he said, referencing recent operations in Iran, Yemen, Lebanon, the West Bank, and Gaza. “We will maintain momentum in Operation Gideon’s Chariots, focusing on Gaza City, and fight until Hamas is defeated, with the hostages before our eyes.”
Zamir pledged a “sophisticated, measured and responsible strategy,” employing the IDF’s full ground, air and naval capabilities. Hamas, he said, “no longer possesses the abilities it had before this operation—we have struck it hard.”
Framing the campaign as part of a broader, long-term confrontation with Iran and its allies, Zamir praised soldiers for “nearly two years of unprecedented achievements that have brought security to the border communities and to all of Israel.” He concluded: “The IDF bears the moral obligation to bring the hostages home—both the living and the dead.”
