Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Thursday that he had directed Israel’s military to take over 70% of Gaza’s territory.
During an interview at a conference in the occupied West Bank, Netanyahu said that Israel is “tightening” its grip on Hamas. “We are now in 60% of the territory of the Gaza Strip. We were at 50%, we moved to 60%,” he said. “My directive is to move to – take it step by step – first of all 70. Let’s start with that.” As Netanyahu spoke, the audience called for him to take over all of Gaza’s territory.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) issued maps to international aid groups in late-April which already showed the military already controlling approximately 64% of Gaza.
The seizure of more of Gaza would force approximately 2 million Palestinians into a shrinking fraction of the coastal enclave’s shattered territory.
Under the October 2025 ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas, Israeli forces withdrew to a demarcation line known as the “yellow line” which encompassed roughly 53% of Gaza.
