Andrey Shirokov — where Israel is leading the conflict in the Middle East
On May 18, Israel announced the start of intense fighting in the Gaza Strip as part of a new large-scale ground operation, Gideon's Chariots, which involved five divisions of the Israeli army at once, as it did only in the first months of the war in the Palestinian enclave at the end of 2023.
This is not just a continuation of the military operation launched 19 months ago, but a new, more intense war being waged under changed conditions, primarily increasing international pressure.
Expansion of the military operation
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that the purpose of the expanded operation is the final defeat of the Palestinian Hamas movement and the establishment of control over the entire territory of the strip. The decision on the intensification of hostilities in the sector was approved by the Israeli Military and Political Cabinet on May 5.
According to Israeli army spokesman Efi Defrin, Operation Gideon's Chariots is aimed at achieving all the goals of the war in Gaza, including the return of hostages and the elimination of Hamas rule in the enclave. According to him, as part of the ground maneuvers that have begun, the Israeli army will "strengthen operational control in the Gaza Strip and divide its territory into parts," as well as withdraw the population from all areas where fighting will take place. In particular, "operational control" implies "clearing areas of enemy presence," he continued, pointing out that Israel "conducted a large-scale call-up of reservists in the light of the needs of the operation."
Two months earlier, on March 18, the Israeli army resumed fighting in the strip, thus interrupting the ceasefire regime established in January. Netanyahu's office explained this by Hamas's rejection of the proposals put forward at the talks by mediators and special envoy of the US President Stephen Witkoff, stating that the purpose of the operation in Gaza is the release of all hostages.
Pressure for negotiations
On May 17, the Minister of Defense of the Jewish state, Israel Katz, noted that with the beginning of preparations for Operation Gideon's Chariots in Gaza, the Hamas delegation in Doha announced a return to negotiations on an agreement on the release of hostages, "in contrast to the intransigent position it had held up to that point." But on May 20, Netanyahu's office announced that Israel itself had decided to withdraw its delegation from Doha, where negotiations had been underway for a week, explaining its decision by the inability of Hamas representatives. According to the report, "the main negotiating team will return to Israel for consultations," and "technical-level negotiators will remain in Doha at this stage." The prime minister's office reiterated that "Israel agrees to the American proposal for the return of the hostages," based on the Witkoff plan, but Hamas "still persists in its refusal." By the way, it was after talks with Witkoff on May 12 that Netanyahu ordered an Israeli delegation to be sent to Qatar. His office clarified at the same time that "negotiations will be conducted without a cease-fire" from Israel.
From this point of view, it is interesting to hear the statement of the Chief of the General Staff of the Israeli Army, Eyal Zamir, who on May 20, during a visit to units in the Gaza Strip, said that Israel was still ready to "adjust its actions" if an agreement was reached on the release of hostages with Hamas.
Humanitarian aid and the threat of famine
At the end of April, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) drew attention to the dire situation in the Gaza Strip due to the Israeli ban on humanitarian aid supplies to the enclave since early March. On March 2, Netanyahu announced the suspension of humanitarian supplies to the Gaza Strip and the closure of all border checkpoints due to Hamas' refusal to accept Witkoff's plan to extend the ceasefire. On the evening of May 18, after the start of intense fighting in the Gaza Strip, Israel announced that it would allow the import of a "basic amount" of food into the Gaza Strip to prevent the threat of famine. Netanyahu's office noted that this was done "on the recommendation of the Israel Defense Forces and in connection with the operational need to expand intensive hostilities to defeat Hamas."
This decision provoked sharp criticism within Israel, primarily from the right-wing political parties in the ruling coalition. On May 19, the Prime Minister himself called agreeing to resume the import of humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip a "difficult decision." According to him, this was done primarily due to strong pressure from Israel's international partners, who did not want to see scenes of mass starvation in the enclave.
The prime minister also recalled that Israel had previously agreed to "provide minimal humanitarian assistance during the war," but later, according to the Israeli side, it turned out that this aid was being appropriated by Hamas supporters, thereby strengthening its control over the residents of the enclave. For this reason, Netanyahu pointed out, aid deliveries were suspended, and Israel, together with the United States, developed a new scheme in which a network of humanitarian aid distribution points guarded by the Israeli army would be established in Gaza.
International pressure
As The Jerusalem Post notes, Israel has now begun "to wage war in Gaza as if there is no deal, and to negotiate as if there is no war." According to the newspaper, the latest steps make it clear that Israel believes that "time is on its side," and "if negotiations do not work out," it will simply continue to put pressure on Hamas and Gaza "until they agree." "But after 19 months of war, time has actually turned into an enemy for Israel," The Jerusalem Post notes. "The longer the war continues and the more the number of civilian casualties increases, the more it will undermine Israel's international authority and the more difficult it will be for defenders of the Jewish state around the world to defend Israel's legitimacy in its just struggle against Hamas," the newspaper concludes.
But the ruling Israeli coalition of right-wing and religious parties shows full consensus on the continuation of the war, although the escalation has caused a sharp increase in criticism from the international community, which is increasingly difficult to ignore. For example, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez, speaking at the opening of the 34th Arab League (LAS) summit in Baghdad on May 17, said that Madrid intends to invite the International Court of Justice to voice its opinion on Israel's compliance with its international obligations regarding humanitarian aid access to the Gaza Strip. In addition, Spain is the initiator of the request to review the EU Association Agreement with Israel. Ireland, Luxembourg and Slovenia joined Madrid's request. On May 19, the press service of the Elysee Palace issued a joint statement by the leaders of France, Britain and Canada, in which they strongly opposed Israel's resumption of hostilities in Gaza and criticized the Israeli government for "odious statements" concerning the Palestinian enclave. They also threatened "concrete measures" against Israel in response to its actions.
On May 20, the United Kingdom announced that it had suspended negotiations with Israel on a free trade agreement. On the same day, the head of EU diplomacy, Kaya Kallas, said that the European Union had decided to review the association agreement between the community and Israel. She noted that the EU is "launching a review process", but expressed hope that the delivery of humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip "will be unblocked and the situation will improve."
What is happening in the EU countries could be considered not to reflect global trends if there were no cooling of American-Israeli relations precisely in connection with the situation in the Gaza Strip. According to the Ynet portal, the actions and statements of US President Donald Trump during his recent visit to the Middle East, including "his decision not to visit Israel," have increased "concern" among the Israeli leadership about the likelihood that the owner of the White House will take "a number of drastic actions in the region, not taking into account the interests of Israel." "This concern has increased against the background of such steps as direct negotiations between the United States and Hamas on the release of Idan Alexander, signals of America's willingness to compromise in negotiations with Iran and the message that Washington no longer requires Riyadh to normalize [with Israel] as a condition for the development of a civilian nuclear program," writes the portal. Against the background of all this, "there are reports of Trump's growing frustration" with Netanyahu, despite the fact that "in public statements, both politicians emphasize that their relationship is as close as ever," Ynet notes.
However, as the Axios portal reported on May 19, citing American sources, US Vice President Jay Dee Vance canceled a planned visit to Israel this week. He allegedly made this decision, considering that his visit could look like support for Israel's actions in the Gaza Strip, while the United States insists on a cease-fire. At the same time, it was officially stated to the Israeli side that the cancellation of the visit was due to "logistical" reasons.
Moscow's position
Maria Zakharova, Director of the Information and Press Department of the Russian Foreign Ministry, described the Israeli leadership's decision to launch large-scale operations in the Gaza Strip as disappointing and entailing new civilian casualties and destruction. She added that Russia has repeatedly called "the only way" to normalize the situation in Gaza "to transfer the resolution of the conflict into a political and diplomatic channel." The official representative of the Foreign Ministry stressed the need "to ensure a complete ceasefire and the resumption of humanitarian assistance to the population of the Gaza Strip, which will help create conditions for restarting the political process in order to find a just and long-term solution to the Palestinian problem on a well-known international legal basis."
Netanyahu's decision
Despite all this, Netanyahu has obviously made his choice. Operation Gideon's Chariots is only expanding, and there is an absolute consensus in the Israeli government coalition on this issue. The situation is such that Israel seems to be openly demonstrating its unequivocal willingness to ignore European pressure and the sentiments of its main strategic ally Washington. Netanyahu decided to bully Hamas.
Whether Israel will succeed in turning the Gaza Strip into a kind of West Bank, achieving the demilitarization and expulsion of Hamas, creating army bases and residential areas for the remaining Palestinian population, largely depends on the pressure on Israel in the international arena, which has been changing rapidly lately.
