Is Israel Ground Forces Deployment Imminent? Defense Ministry Orders "Maintain Readiness"

Statement at Gaza border... no mention of timing
Israeli source "Hamas roots must be eradicated"

Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant reportedly told ground forces gathered near the Gaza Strip border on the 19th (local time) to maintain a state of readiness for an incursion, according to reports by The Guardian and others.

On the 19th (local time), Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Galant speaks during a meeting with infantry soldiers in the Gaza border area.
[Image source=Reuters Yonhap News]

During a meeting with infantry soldiers near the Gaza Strip border that day, Minister Gallant urged, "Organize yourselves and maintain readiness." He added, "If you are currently looking at Gaza from afar, soon you will be looking from inside," and said, "Orders will be given." However, he did not specify when the ground invasion would begin.

Since the surprise attack by the Palestinian armed faction Hamas on the 7th, Israel has concentrated tens of thousands of troops near the Gaza border and has continued indiscriminate retaliatory airstrikes. While expectations remain high that Israel’s ground forces will soon be deployed, no concrete signs of a full-scale operation have yet been detected.

However, The Guardian reported that Israeli government officials have clearly expressed their intention to carry out the operation named "Operation Swords of Iron." Although Israel has clashed with Hamas three times in Gaza over the past 16 years, responding more to contain rather than to topple them, the Israeli side believes the situation has changed.

An Israeli security official told The Guardian, "The strategy was to space out each clash more, but it failed, and this can no longer continue."

He added, "The only conclusion is that we must go inside, clean this up, and eliminate Hamas not only militarily but also economically from the roots," emphasizing, "Everything must be destroyed." He continued, "This is our current thinking, and we are preparing for it," while anticipating that the process of eliminating Hamas may take longer than expected.