His silence on the ceasefire proved he was the real obstacle
As mediators celebrated what appeared to be a breakthrough — Hamas accepting a ceasefire framework months in the making — Israel's defence minister signed orders to conquer Gaza City and mobilize 60,000 reservists, a decision made weeks earlier and now made visible. The simultaneity was not coincidence but signal: that military objectives and diplomatic openings were being pursued on separate tracks, with the former taking precedence. With over 62,000 Palestinians dead, 49 hostages still in Gaza, and settlement expansion advancing in the West Bank on the very same day, the shape of a conflict resistant to resolution grew clearer — and the distance between war and peace, wider.
- Israel's defence minister approved a full military operation to seize Gaza City and called up 60,000 reservists on the same day Hamas accepted a ceasefire proposal, making the collision between war and diplomacy impossible to ignore.
- The ceasefire framework — a 60-day truce with staggered hostage releases, prisoner exchanges, and humanitarian aid — was described by Qatar as nearly identical to terms Israel had already accepted, yet Netanyahu called no cabinet meeting to discuss it.
- Hamas accused Netanyahu of sacrificing the remaining hostages for military and political goals, while France warned of permanent regional war and Germany formally rejected the escalation.
- On the ground in Gaza City, residents fled eastern neighborhoods as strikes intensified, with one 64-year-old describing entire districts destroyed and thousands displaced — the human cost accumulating beneath the diplomatic silence.
- The same day as the Gaza offensive approval, Israel greenlit major West Bank settlement expansion, signaling to observers a government pursuing territorial and military objectives even as international pressure for a pause mounted.
On Wednesday, Israel's defence minister approved a military plan to seize Gaza City and called up roughly 60,000 reservists — a decision made by Netanyahu's security cabinet in early August, now set in motion at the precise moment Hamas announced it had accepted a ceasefire framework that mediators had spent months constructing.
The proposal was not ambitious in scope: a 60-day truce, the release of 10 living hostages and 18 bodies in a first exchange, with remaining captives to follow in a second phase, alongside Palestinian prisoner releases and humanitarian aid. Qatar described the latest version as nearly identical to a framework Israel had already accepted. Netanyahu did not call a cabinet meeting to consider it. His office said only that he had ordered the timeline for defeating Hamas to be accelerated.
Hamas responded with open anger, accusing Netanyahu of indifference to the hostages and calling him the true obstacle to any deal. Germany rejected the escalation. France's Emmanuel Macron warned it risked producing catastrophe for both peoples and pulling the region into permanent war.
In Gaza City, the offensive was already reshaping daily life. Residents fled eastern neighborhoods as strikes intensified. A 64-year-old in the Zeitoun district described most buildings destroyed and thousands displaced. The Israeli military called the coming phase gradual, precise, and targeted — language that offered little comfort to those already moving.
The broader toll remained immense. Of the 251 hostages taken in Hamas's October 2023 attack — which killed 1,219 people — 49 remained in Gaza, with 27 believed dead. Gaza's health ministry counted at least 62,122 Palestinians killed since the offensive began, a figure the UN considers credible. On Wednesday alone, at least 25 more deaths were reported.
The same day, Israel approved major settlement expansion in the West Bank, drawing condemnation from the Palestinian Authority. Taken together, the moves painted a picture of a government pressing forward on military and territorial fronts even as mediators urged a pause — leaving the question of what, if anything, might shift that course.
On Wednesday, Israel's defence minister signed off on a military operation to seize Gaza City and called up roughly 60,000 reservists to carry it out. The timing was deliberate and pointed: Hamas had just announced it had accepted a ceasefire framework that mediators had been negotiating for months. The approval of the offensive, first decided in early August by Netanyahu's security cabinet, amounted to a public rejection of those talks—or at minimum, a signal that Israel intended to keep fighting regardless of what the other side agreed to.
The ceasefire proposal itself was modest in scope. It called for an initial 60-day truce, during which 10 hostages and 18 bodies would be released from Gaza in the first exchange, with the remaining captives freed in a second phase. The agreement also included provisions for Palestinian prisoners to be freed and for humanitarian aid to flow into the territory. Qatar, one of the three mediators alongside Egypt and the United States, said the latest version was nearly identical to a framework Israel had already accepted. Yet Netanyahu had not called a security cabinet meeting to discuss it. His office issued a statement saying he had ordered the timetables for defeating Hamas to be accelerated, without specifying how much faster or by when.
Hamas responded with fury. The group accused Netanyahu of being indifferent to the fate of Israeli hostages and said his silence on the ceasefire proposal proved he was the real obstacle to any deal. The Palestinian Authority and international observers echoed the criticism. Germany announced it rejected the escalation. France's president, Emmanuel Macron, warned that the offensive could only produce catastrophe for both peoples and risked dragging the region into permanent war.
On the ground in Gaza City, the consequences were already visible. Mustafa Qazzaat, who heads the emergency committee for the Gaza municipality, described conditions as catastrophic. Large numbers of residents were fleeing the eastern neighborhoods as the military operation began. One 64-year-old resident, Anis Daloul, said Israeli forces had destroyed most buildings in the Zeitoun district and displaced thousands. An Israeli military official characterized the coming phase as a gradual, precise, and targeted operation in and around Gaza City, including areas where troops had not yet operated.
The numbers underlying the conflict remained staggering. Of the 251 people taken hostage during Hamas's October 2023 attack on Israel—an assault that killed 1,219 people, mostly civilians—49 remained in Gaza. The Israeli military believed 27 of them were dead. Israel's offensive, now nearly two years old, had killed at least 62,122 Palestinians according to Gaza's health ministry, a figure the United Nations considers reliable. Most were civilians. On Wednesday alone, Gaza's civil defence agency reported at least 25 deaths from Israeli strikes and fire, though verification was difficult given media restrictions in the territory.
The approval of the Gaza City offensive came the same day Israel's government approved a major settlement expansion in the West Bank, in territory the international community has said is essential to any future Palestinian state. The Palestinian Authority condemned the decision in the strongest possible terms, saying it deepened the division of the territory. The moves suggested a government uninterested in negotiating an end to the conflict—or at least one willing to pursue military objectives and territorial expansion even as mediators pushed for a pause in fighting. The question now was whether international pressure, or pressure from within Israel itself, would shift that calculation.
Citas Notables
The situation is catastrophic, with large numbers fleeing eastern neighborhoods— Mustafa Qazzaat, head of Gaza municipality emergency committee
The offensive can only lead to complete disaster for both peoples and drag the region into permanent war— French President Emmanuel Macron
La Conversación del Hearth Otra perspectiva de la historia
Why did Netanyahu's government approve this offensive right now, when Hamas had just accepted a ceasefire proposal?
The timing suggests the government wasn't interested in pausing. They'd approved the Gaza City plan in early August, so this wasn't a new decision—but signing off on it while ceasefire talks were active sent a clear message about priorities.
What exactly does Hamas's ceasefire proposal offer?
A 60-day truce to start, with 10 hostages and 18 bodies released first, then the rest released in a second phase while permanent ceasefire terms get negotiated. It also includes Palestinian prisoner releases and aid access. Qatar said it was almost identical to something Israel had already agreed to.
So why hasn't Netanyahu responded to it?
He hasn't called a security cabinet meeting to discuss it. His office just said he wants to speed up the timeline for defeating Hamas. It's a non-answer that reads like a rejection.
What's the human toll of all this?
Sixty-two thousand Palestinians dead according to Gaza's health ministry. Forty-nine Israeli hostages still in Gaza, 27 of them presumed dead. Thousands of people fleeing Gaza City as the new offensive begins. The emergency official there called the situation catastrophic.
Is there any pressure on Netanyahu to change course?
Yes—Germany rejected the escalation, Macron warned it could drag the region into permanent war. But Netanyahu's government also approved a major West Bank settlement expansion the same day, which suggests they're not backing down.
What comes next?
The military operation will intensify. Whether international pressure or domestic opposition changes the government's calculation remains to be seen. The ceasefire framework is on the table, but it's not clear anyone in power in Israel is willing to take it.