Israel considers occupying Gaza amid warnings of heavy losses among prisoners and soldiers.

The Israeli ministerial council is discussing today, Thursday, a plan to fully reoccupy the Gaza Strip, amid disagreements between the political and military leaderships, and warnings of heavy losses that will befall the prisoners and soldiers.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu insists on occupying the strip and recently presented his position regarding the precise method he wishes to implement.

The newspaper Maariv reported that Netanyahu is demanding the complete occupation of the Gaza Strip under pressure from the far-right faction in his government, led by Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, Settlement Minister Orit Strook, and National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir.

It added—citing sources—that the army will present today, Thursday, to the political leadership the price Israel will pay if it decides to occupy the Gaza Strip.

The newspaper further stated, according to its sources, that estimates indicate that most prisoners in Gaza will meet their end at the hands of their captors or due to airstrikes if the occupying army expands its operations.

According to these sources, a large number of soldiers may be killed in the Gaza Strip if the military operation is expanded.

Military sources estimated to Maariv that the effort to occupy the Gaza Strip could take at least three months and would involve the destruction of tunnels.

The newspaper also added—according to the same sources—that after completing the occupation of the Gaza Strip, the army would be forced to establish military rule and care for about 2.5 million Palestinians.

Maariv warned that this is a densely populated area, and according to Israeli intelligence estimates, it is largely planted with mines and booby-trapped.

It mentioned that although Netanyahu's plan is to carry out a swift operation to occupy the strip and decisively end the battle with Hamas, he is not currently presenting the phase that will follow the resolution, and it is unclear what will happen to the areas that will be occupied.

It said, "If the plan is driven by far-right ministers, then the occupation of the Gaza Strip aims to remove the Gazan population from the area and establish Israeli settlements on the lands that will be evacuated, a plan that is not part of the original war objectives."

According to leaks, Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir opposes the plan to occupy Gaza, describing it as a strategic trap, asserting that it will exhaust the army for years and endanger the lives of the prisoners.

The Chief of Staff proposes a containment plan that includes several axes in Gaza, aimed at exerting military pressure on Hamas to force it to release the prisoners.

The newspaper continued that the operation to occupy the Gaza Strip will impose a significant cost on Israeli society.

It added that the burden on Israeli society, according to the army, will manifest in the immediate and extensive mobilization of tens of thousands of reserve soldiers, and the call-up of all regular units to return to combat in the Gaza Strip in the coming days.

Israel previously occupied the Gaza Strip for 38 years between 1967 and 2005.

In light of these leaks, writer and Israeli affairs expert Suleiman Basharat stated that the recent statement by the Israeli Chief of Staff cannot be read outside of three intertwined frameworks.

The first is that the Israeli military establishment realizes that the continuation of the war may endanger the lives of Israeli prisoners, so this warning came as a way to shift responsibility to the political level and to protect the army from any future accountability if the prisoners are harmed.

He clarified that this warning exempts the Chief of Staff from direct accountability in the event of harm to the prisoners and serves as future protection from any investigative committees that may be opened later.

In the second framework, Basharat pointed out in a statement to Al-Jazeera Net that this position "uses a tool to prepare the Israeli street to accept the potential cost," amid an awareness among the political and military leadership that the lives of the prisoners may become part of the upcoming political and military cost.

He added that this warning is not a rejection of the war, but an implicit confirmation of readiness to implement any political decision, as Zamir himself indicated that he would ultimately implement the political decision, which means an implicit acceptance by the military establishment of the government's plan.

Regarding the objectives of the upcoming war, Basharat believes that the plan to occupy the city of Gaza and the central camps being discussed by the "Cabinet" aims to move the population block southward, preparing for a broader phase of displacement towards Sinai.

He also pointed out that this demographic and humanitarian pressure aims to push the resistance to comply with Israel's conditions, primarily the surrender of weapons, the removal of leadership, and the release of prisoners.

He noted that this phase of the war is taking