Israel begins large ground invasion of Gaza City as IDF orders evacuation

In a post, the IDF said that all Gaza City residents must evacuate immediately as it had officially become a dangerous combat zone.

The 36th Division will soon join the deep invasion as well as the surrounding Gaza City. The 99th Division is fighting near the Gaza border area, to the north of Gaza City, and to defend Israel’s border.

Next, the 143rd Division continues to fight against Hamas’s forces in southern Gaza and provides defense for the Israeli border there.

In addition to the large number of mandatory service soldiers involved, around 130,000 reservists have been called up, with an approximately 80% response rate.

The soldiers have been called up for service duty on dates ranging from November of this year to early 2026.

IDF Chief Spokesman Efi Deffrin said that the operation could take multiple months to carry out an initial takeover of Gaza City, plus multiple additional months to meticulously get rid of Hamas elements and boobytraps in Gaza City, after it has been generally taken over.

Part of the problem in knowing how long the operation will take is that the IDF is not sure what it is up against in terms of what is left of Hamas militarily.

On one hand, IDF sources said that Hamas has only 2,000-2,500 combat-ready forces, but on the other hand, it is said to have tens of thousands of additional potential forces to call on, who are much younger and much less well-trained, some of whom participate from time to time in low-scale guerrilla warfare-style ambushes.

At the start of the war, Hamas had 24,000 well-trained, fully ready combat fighters, but the IDF killed around 22,000 over the course of the war.

The IDF said that around 350,000 Palestinian civilians out of around one million have evacuated Gaza City, and around another 250,000 in recent days.

Based on other instances during the war, IDF sources estimate that the vast majority of the remaining 500,000-600,000 civilians will evacuate now that the massive ground invasion has begun.

Further, the IDF said that there are set legal approval procedures for evacuating the civilian population, such as to where they can be moved and under which conditions.

Moreover, the IDF said that Hamas is working hard and violently to try to prevent Gazan civilians from evacuating.

According to the IDF, new humanitarian areas in Khan Yunis have been established, with an additional 20,000 family-size tents already erected.

The IDF stated that 300 trucks of food per day are entering Gaza from international aid groups, in addition to ongoing aid from the Gaza Humanitarian fourm (GHF) in southern Gaza.

In addition, the military said that there are more operating water lines in Gaza now than at any other point during the war, with four hospitals currently operational – and that another eight field hospitals are also operational.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has decided that, as long as he has support from the Trump administration, he is willing to thumb his nose at much of the world that has strenuously opposed Israel’s latest invasion plans.

There have also been tensions between Netanyahu and IDF Chief of Staff Lt.-Gen. Eyal Zamir about how to run the invasion.

Zamir had hoped for a partial hostage deal in place of the invasion and for a slow invasion, avoiding risks to the hostages, IDF soldiers, and Palestinian civilians, where possible.

Netanyahu has preferred the invasion option and for it to be wrapped up rapidly.

Despite his objections to the invasion, the IDF said that Zamir was in the field with the troops on Tuesday.

In a post to Truth Social, US President Donald Trump also acknowledged the danger the hostages are in.

“I have just read a news report that Hamas has moved the hostages above ground to use them as human shields against Israel’s ground offensive. I hope the leaders of Hamas know what they’re getting into if they do such a thing.

“This is a human atrocity, the likes of which few people have ever seen before. Don’t let this happen, or ALL “BETS” ARE OFF. RELEASE ALL HOSTAGES NOW!”

Netanyahu later thanked Trump for his “unflinching support for Israel’s battle against Hamas and the release of all our hostages.”

The Hostages and Missing Families Forum Headquarters slammed the decision to intensify military action in Gaza City in a late Monday night statement.

“After 710 nights of being held captive by terrorists, tonight could be the final night for hostages who are barely surviving, and our last chance to locate and recover the deceased for dignified burial,” the statement read.

“Prime Minister Netanyahu bears personal responsibility for the fate of the hostages. The people of Israel will not forgive the sacrifice of the hostages and soldiers. The writing is on the wall.”

The Gaza Humanitarian Forum warned that the enclave is on the brink of a full humanitarian collapse following a surge of attacks over the past 24 hours. Over 1.4 million people are in urgent need of shelter, yet only one organization is currently providing tents.

Hundreds of thousands have been relocated to southern Gaza without adequate infrastructure, leaving vulnerable populations – particularly people with disabilities – at high risk. Overcrowding, lack of basic facilities, and damaged infrastructure endanger public health and increase the likelihood of disease outbreaks, they added.

The forum called on the Israeli government to immediately allow aid entry from all organizations and release more than 100,000 humanitarian aid pallets currently held in Israel.