TEL AVIV — Israel has significantly increased its control over the Gaza Strip, now holding more than 50% of the territory as its military campaign against Hamas continues. The expansion has led to growing concerns over the displacement of Palestinians into increasingly confined areas.
The most extensive zone under Israeli control lies along the Gaza border, where homes, farmland, and infrastructure have been leveled, rendering large areas uninhabitable, according to accounts from Israeli soldiers and human rights organizations. The military buffer zone along the border has doubled in recent weeks.
Israel frames the move as a temporary strategy to pressure Hamas into releasing hostages taken during the October 7, 2023, attack that triggered the war. However, rights groups warn that the land being seized—including a corridor that splits the north from the south—could signal plans for longer-term control.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has stated that even after Hamas is defeated, Israel will maintain security control over Gaza and encourage Palestinians to leave. “They destroyed everything they could, they shot everything that looks functioning… [the Palestinians] will have nothing to come back [to],” one Israeli soldier reportedly said.
