The IDF is reportedly adjusting its strategy in Gaza, shifting from high-intensity combat to a sustained, low-intensity engagement aimed at undermining Hamas, according to a report from Channel 12’s military reporter.

The strategic change coincides with demands from the United States for Israel to reduce its intensive bombardments and troop incursions into urban areas, and also aligns with an unofficial deadline set for January by Biden administration officials.

According to Channel 12’s military correspondent Nir Dvori, the Israeli army plans to establish a one-kilometer-wide buffer zone within the Gaza Strip along its borders with Israel. This zone will expand the existing buffer area.

Dvori reports, “Infantry troops, largely drawn from conscripts, will occupy the zone to ensure Gazans cannot approach the fence with Israel, and launch pinpoint raids from there.” He notes that the troop presence in this new buffer zone will be significantly smaller than the current levels.

While Dvori does not cite a specific source for this information, it is common for Israeli military reporters to receive briefings from the army which are then presented as their own “analysis.”

Dvori explained the rationale behind this new military approach: “The assumption behind the change in strategy is that total defeat of Hamas will not be achieved via a massive ground offensive, but via a long war of attrition,” he says. “It can take months, maybe even years — but creating a new reality in Gaza will require a diplomatic process and economic moves along those of the military.”

Yuli Edelstein, the chair of the Knesset’s Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee, acknowledged this shift in strategy during a meeting.

“As the fighting progresses, Israel is transitioning from the second to third stage” of the military operation in Gaza,” Edelstein said, advising the public to brace for a prolonged conflict.

In late October, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant had remarked on the limitations of Israel’s ground offensive against Hamas. Gallant mentioned, “Israel’s ground offensive would not be enough to defeat Hamas, which would require a third, intermediate stage of fighting during which it will begin to seek out new leadership for the battered enclave, while rooting out ‘pockets of resistance.’”

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