Why did Netanyahu turn against the course of negotiations and where is he heading in Gaza?

Gaza - While attention was turning towards a potential breakthrough in the prisoner exchange file after weeks of intense negotiations, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu - wanted by the International Criminal Court - surprised mediators with a last-minute reversal, raising the stakes by talking about reoccupying the Gaza Strip.

This move was seen by observers as part of Netanyahu's ongoing maneuvering policy to escape internal obligations and pressure for more concessions.

Despite anticipation for a meeting of the security cabinet (the Cabinet) on Thursday evening, most estimates suggest that the Israeli Prime Minister is using the negotiating position to serve internal political goals related to his personal and electoral interests, and is maneuvering until the last moment in hopes of extracting more concessions from Hamas.

For his part, Palestinian writer and political analyst Wissam Afifa - in his talk with Al Jazeera Net - considered that Netanyahu's retreat from the negotiations for the deal led by mediators in recent weeks is due to a number of reasons that include:

On his part, security and military affairs researcher Rami Abu Zbeida - in a conversation with Al Jazeera Net - believes that if the occupation government insists on expanding military operations in the Gaza Strip, there are three expected scenarios:

Amid the Israeli threats, the Israeli National Security Studies Institute surveyed Israeli public opinions regarding the security and political performance in the ongoing war since October 2023, revealing that 61% do not believe that military operations in Gaza will lead to the return of the prisoners, while only 25% of the public believes that the operations will result in Hamas's defeat and the return of the prisoners, while 52% believe that Netanyahu's government is obstructing reaching a deal for the exchange of prisoners.

The Military Affairs platform published an analysis of the survey results, stating that the indicators of the survey undermine the essence of the Israeli military doctrine based on imposing facts by force and recovering prisoners without concessions, and that the resistance has succeeded in establishing an effective attrition equation, making any resolution impossible, and enhancing the centrality of the resistance option among Palestinians.

According to the Israeli platform, any upcoming military operation in Gaza or any front will be met with a low ceiling of popular expectations, which reduces the army's maneuverability and makes it susceptible to popular and media pressure in the event of suffering losses without tangible results.

The platform indicates that the army is gradually losing its "sacred" status in Israeli consciousness, which reignites the debate about its ability to decisively act, and fosters an increasing atmosphere of distrust in the entire security system, and the internal Israeli division and societal fragmentation will turn into a new arena for conflict, which the resistance bets on and accumulates the results of the war of attrition.