Israeli generals' plan
The plan would force the complete evacuation of Northern Gaza by labeling all remaining civilians as military targets and blocking supplies such as food and medication from entering the area.
Israel ultimately did not force out all the civilian population of North Gaza, and the implementation of the 2025 Israel–Hamas war ceasefire allowed displaced Gazans to return to that area.
[2][3] According to Giora Eiland, the plan's chief architect, this approach was intended to pressure Hamas and secure the release of approximately 100 remaining Israeli hostages held since October 7, 2023.
Its architects identified a concerning gap between leadership assessments and ground reality, leading them to propose a strategy targeting Hamas's four fundamental resources: money, manpower, supplies, and motivation.
Identifying Gaza's dependence on external sources for basic necessities such as fuel, food, and water as key leverage points that could be used more effectively, he proposed strategies that would later develop into the completed generals' plan.
[7] In late September 2024, Prime Minister of Israel Benjamin Netanyahu unveiled a completed generals' plan to Israeli military and political officials during a closed session at the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee.
While his office officially denied considering the proposal, political analysts suggested he may have allowed partial implementation to maintain support from his far-right coalition partners, particularly during a critical period before budget approval deadlines.
By early 2024, Israel had already launched military operations in areas such as the Jabaliya refugee camp, and the amount of humanitarian aid reaching northern Gaza had significantly decreased since October 1, 2023.
[8][9] This plan was proposed by the Eiland-led Forum of Reserve Commanders and Fighters, intending to implement the full blockade and mandatory evacuation of the entire civilian population of Northern Gaza, at penalty of death for any residents or refugees who remained in the area.
[10][11] On 6 October 2024, Israel designated all of the northern Gaza Strip, including Jabalia, as a combat zone and ordered the entire civilian population to evacuate.
[2] In addition, several hospitals in northern Gaza reported critical shortages of fuel for generators, exacerbating casualties from ongoing Israeli bombardments.
Jessica Montell of HaMoked, a Jerusalem-based civil rights advocacy group, compared the tactics to medieval siege warfare, stating they contradicted fundamental principles of the laws of war.
Many Palestinians expressed fear about moving to southern Gaza, where conditions were already dire with overcrowded tent camps and continued airstrikes on civilian shelters.
[20] Tamer Qarmout, a professor of public policy at the Doha Institute, stated in response to the implementation of tactics from the plan during the Siege of Jabalia: "We’re talking about another wave of displacement – another Nakba.
[5] Doha Institute for Graduate Studies professor Mohamad Elmasry expressed the notion that the letter sent by the U.S. government generally represented a "distraction" in attempt to conceal the administration's complicity in war crimes committed by Israel in Gaza.
noted that the diplomatic intervention's timing coincided with the approaching 2024 U.S. presidential election, where Arab and Muslim American voters in swing states could play a crucial role in its outcome.
[24] He also noted that the letter could serve as documentation of U.S. efforts to ensure legal compliance with international law and the U.S. Leahy Law, which governs military assistance to foreign nations, and that the letter's focus on humanitarian aid access potentially served to address immediate concerns while avoiding more contentious aspects of the conflict, such as United States weapons delivery to Israel, forced evacuations, and civilian casualties.
