Benjamin Netanyahu ordered Israeli forces to seize 70% of the Gaza Strip on May 28, 2026, violating the October 2025 US-brokered ceasefire that limited Israeli control to 53%. Israeli forces currently control 60% and have killed more than 900 Palestinians since the ceasefire began. The expansion would cram 2.2 million Palestinians into less than a third of Gaza, already the most overcrowded place on Earth.
Israeli territorial expansion in Gaza
- ▪A UN briefing on May 25, 2026 for the heads of humanitarian agencies working in Gaza recorded Israeli tanks advancement on a daily basis in the northern district of Jabalia
- ▪Benjamin Netanyahu spoke at a conference in an occupied West Bank settlement in May 2026
- ▪Under the US-brokered ceasefire in October 2025, the Israeli army withdrew to a demarcation line which gave Israel direct control of 53% of Gaza
- ▪Israeli tanks were reported advancing east of the southern city of Khan Younis in May 2026
- ▪Benjamin Netanyahu is struggling for his political survival before elections scheduled in the next few months after May 2026
- ▪Benjamin Netanyahu gave orders to the Israeli army to seize control of 70% of the Gaza Strip
- ▪Israeli forces control 60% of the Gaza Strip as of May 28, 2026
Ceasefire violations by Israel
- ▪Israeli forces have killed more than 900 Palestinians since the ceasefire began in October 2025
- ▪The expansion of Israeli military control to 70% of Gaza would be a direct violation of the UN Security Council resolution that endorsed the October 2025 ceasefire
- ▪The expansion of Israeli military control to 70% of Gaza would be a direct violation of Donald Trump's 20-point peace plan
- ▪Donald Trump's 20-point peace plan laid out a temporary yellow line splitting Gaza into Israeli- and Hamas-run halves pending further peace negotiations
Palestinian displacement from homes
- ▪Donald Trump's 20-point peace plan stated that no one will be forced to leave Gaza
- ▪Armed men affiliated with militias entered the area east of Deir al-Balah in May 2026 and informed the Abu al-Ajeen family they had until 10pm to evacuate all houses in the area
Israeli-backed militia operations
- ▪Israeli-backed militias have increased their patrolling activities in Gaza as of May 2026
- ▪An Israeli-backed anti-Hamas militia run by Gaza warlord Ashraf al-Mansi advanced westwards from the yellow line around Jabalia in May 2026
Ceasefire monitoring failures
- ▪The United States gave Hamas an offer on a plan for disarmament two months before May 2026
- ▪A UN Security Council resolution passed in November 2025 delegated the monitoring of the Gaza ceasefire to a Trump-appointed Board of Peace
- ▪Hamas did not respond to the United States' offer on a plan for disarmament as of May 2026
- ▪Nickolay Mladenov was widely criticized for his report to the UN Security Council in May 2026, which assigned primary blame for the failings of the ceasefire on Hamas without holding Israel accountable for its violations
Humanitarian overcrowding conditions
- ▪The expansion of Israeli control to 70% of Gaza would mean that 2.2 million Palestinians who have survived the war would be crammed into less than a third of their original territory
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