Report: Israel army chief prefers end to Gaza war over lack of strategy

Israeli Army Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir has reportedly favoured putting an end to the war against the besieged Gaza Strip and concluding a ceasefire – prisoner swap deal with Hamas over moving ahead without a “clear strategy”, Israeli Army Radio reported on Monday. 

According to the radio, Zamir has criticised in closed-door conversations the lack of a “clear strategy” for the war in Gaza and called on the political echelon to clarify future strategic plans.

Zamir warned that the cabinet has not convened for a long time, leaving the army in the dark on the next steps, while instructions from the political echelon have been “unclear”.

The radio also reported that Zamir is pushing for a deal, saying, “It is possible to soften the Israeli position, and efforts must be made to reach a deal. Even if an agreement is reached to end the war, the army is prepared for such a scenario at any price”.

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Zamir believed it will be possible to maintain control over key areas in the Gaza Strip adjacent to the border in any future agreement, but warned that a prolonged presence in the Gaza Strip without clear plans endangers the soldiers’ lives and serves Hamas’s plans to wage a war of attrition.

He explained that if efforts to implement the deal fail, the army could occupy the entire Gaza Strip which would take several months while “cleansing” the area above and below ground would take years.

The second option would be to “besiege and exhaust” the residential areas in the Gaza Strip which will exhaust the army through guerrilla warfare, according to the same source.

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