A day after Israel’s security cabinet approved a sweeping plan to take full control of the Gaza Strip, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu insisted Thursday that Israel does not intend to occupy Gaza—but rather to “free” it from Hamas rule.

“We are not going to occupy Gaza—we are going to free Gaza from Hamas,” Netanyahu wrote on X. “Gaza will be demilitarized, and a peaceful civilian administration will be established, one that is not the Palestinian Authority, not Hamas, and not any other terrorist organization. This will help free our hostages and ensure Gaza does not pose a threat to Israel in the future.”

According to a report by Ynet, the cabinet decision intentionally avoided using the word “occupy” due to legal concerns about international obligations that would be triggered by a formal occupation, including full responsibility for Gaza’s civilian population. Instead, the government described the plan as a “takeover.” But one senior Israeli official quoted in the report dismissed that distinction as “superficial,” saying the decision effectively establishes full military rule over the Strip.

The approved plan, which would begin with the conquest of Gaza City, could dramatically shift Israel’s legal and humanitarian responsibilities. Until now, Israel has maintained that it does not bear responsibility for civilian services in Gaza—such as electricity, water, and medical aid—because it does not have “effective control” over the territory. That position could become legally untenable if Israel reasserts control over major population centers.

IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir reportedly raised precisely that concern in internal discussions, warning that a full-scale takeover could force Israel into assuming de facto responsibility for Gaza’s two million residents.

According to sources cited by Ynet, Zamir cautioned that once Israeli forces capture Gaza City and other dense urban areas, the claim that the territory is not under Israeli control would be impossible to maintain. That shift could obligate Israel under international law to provide food, water, medical services, and civil order—services currently managed by the UN and other international organizations.

The same report noted that the military operation is not open-ended: if a hostage deal materializes, the plan to take full control of the Strip could be halted. Yet no such agreement appears imminent, and Hamas continues to hold hostages under increasingly dire circumstances.

The cabinet’s approval of the plan marks a pivotal point in the war, yet the future of Gaza remains murky. Netanyahu has ruled out reinstating Hamas, the Palestinian Authority, or any other “terrorist organization,” but has offered little detail about who would govern the enclave once the dust settles.

Critics at home and abroad argue that the government’s endgame is dangerously undefined. “You can’t destroy a governing entity and not have a clear idea of what comes next,” one Israeli security analyst told Channel 12 News. “If Israel is not going to occupy Gaza, someone else must. And that ‘someone’ doesn’t currently exist.”

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