Israel Controls 50% of Gaza as It Expands Military Footprint

1 comment

1. According to a recent [article ](https://www.aljazeera.net/opinions/2025/4/9/%d9%84%d9%85%d8%a7%d8%b0%d8%a7-%d9%84%d8%a7-%d8%aa%d9%82%d8%a7%d8%aa%d9%84-%d8%a7%d9%84%d9%85%d9%82%d8%a7%d9%88%d9%85%d8%a9)by Saeed Ziad, Al Jazeera’s political analyst with close ties to Hamas. The war can be divided into three phases:

   Early War – Northern Gaza (Oct 2023 to start of Khan Yunis battle): Saeed describes this stage as Hamas setting up a network of pre-planned defensive positions. Saeed admits Hamas paid an unsustainable price. The goal seemed to be to cause so many Israeli casualties that Israel would stop or not resume ground operations. That didn’t happen.

   Khan Yunis and Shift to Guerrilla Warfare: From the first Khan Yunis battle, Hamas switched to classic guerrilla tactics, trying to get fewer Hamas losses per IDF casualty. Instead of one big blow, they aimed for a war of raids and attrition. Saeed notes that Hamas fighters per area dropped to about 25% compared to earlier battles in the north. The idea was to drag things out and wear Israel down enough that it would want a deal to end the war. That didn’t work either.

   Current Stage – Focused Defense and Buying Time: Saeed now describes a situation where very few Hamas fighters are facing the IDF directly. This, he says, is deliberate. Hamas has pulled most of its forces back to its “core” areas. They know they can’t defend all of Gaza, so they’re focusing on specific strongholds. Saeed (who’s very pro-Hamas) said that: “This defensive method allows the best use of remaining military power and resources, much of which has been eroded since the war began.” He also points out that Hamas is now cut off from resupply via the Philadelphi Route, making it even harder for them to recover. The strategy now, seems to be simple: stall for time, exhaust the Israeli public, and chip away at American support.

Comments are closed.