Israel Announced Plan For Gaza For The First Time Since The Start Of The War

Palestinians to be able to manage civil affairs with the help of a "global task force", without Israeli settlement activities, but under continued military control.

Such a plan was presented by Israel's Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, quoted by Israeli and international media. The proposal may not be final: tensions at the cabinet meeting where it was discussed led to heavy wrangling over the reaction of far-right coalition partners.

The plan announced by Gallant also calls for the reconstruction of Gaza to be led by the United States, Egypt and "moderate" Arab states (by this term Israel refers to countries such as the United Arab Emirates and sometimes Saudi Arabia).

Until now, no high-ranking Israeli official had laid out such a vision. This comes ahead of US Secretary of State Antony Blinken's fourth visit to the region since October, which includes Israel, the West Bank, Turkey, Greece, Jordan, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia and Egypt.

Ahead of Blinken's visit, Israel also confirmed it was moving into a new phase in the war, with a reduced military presence in the north and more targeted attacks on fighters and leaders. In the north, there will still be raids, operations against tunnels, and airstrikes will continue, which, according to the health authorities in Gaza, have caused the death of thousands of civilians, but according to Israel, they have also killed many fighters.

Meanwhile, diplomacy to contain regional risks has been joined by the European Union: the bloc's top diplomat, Josep Borrell, is going to the Lebanese border, where a US representative has already been sent and where shelling has escalated in the days before the killing in Beirut of Hamas's second-in-command, Saleh al-Arouri.

Israel has been under pressure for months to present its vision for Gaza's future after a surprise attack by the Hamas group that left 1,200 dead led to a war of airstrikes and a ground operation in the Strip. The Hamas-controlled health authorities in Gaza speak of over 22,000 dead; according to Israel, thousands of them are fighters of armed groups.

Israel will be guided by four pillars for the future of Gaza:

• will coordinate and plan a supervisory role in civil administration and be responsible for the inspection of incoming goods;
• a US-led multinational task force in partnership with European and moderate Arab states will take charge of civil affairs management and economic recovery;
• Egypt will be responsible for the main checkpoint on its border with Gaza in coordination with Israel Palestinian Authority;
• officials cannot be affiliated with Hamas (if this is followed, institutions, utility agencies and aid distribution will be preserved).

It is clear from Gallant's plan that Israel will have no civilian presence. It rests on the notion that Hamas will not control Gaza and is not a threat to Israel's security (one of the goals of the war).

To achieve the other key goal (the release of the hostages), the return of the residents of northern Gaza to their homes is tied to the release of all hostages.

Israel also asserts the right to take military action in the name of its security and controls the borders of Gaza. This point is also expected to be met with criticism by the Arab world, as it could be perceived as a renewal of the occupation after the unilateral withdrawal in 2005.

A point of contention with the West, including the US, could theoretically be the failure to mention a future role for the Palestinian Authority - which has controlled only the occupied West Bank since Hamas took power in Gaza at the turn of the century - in governance. The US insists that the Palestinian Authority must take control of Gaza over time as part of strengthening Palestinian institutions and the path to a separate state.

Instead, according to The Times of Israel sources, clans and local bureaucrats, government officials and even academics in Gaza's cities and refugee camps will have a role in power.

According to Gallant, the issue of the Palestinian Authority is irrelevant at this stage, as it must first "reform". This is a thesis for which the US also advocates and which is already shared in Ramallah. Representatives of the Palestinian Authority, however, admit that it may be necessary to include Hamas - a red line for Israel.

With no Palestinian Authority at the helm of Gaza and no path to reunification with the West Bank, it may be difficult to convince potential "multinational task force" partners. According to interlocutors of The Times of Israel, aides to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu actually support opening the door to a "reformed Palestinian Authority," but not out loud, so as not to alienate coalition partners. In fact, an attempt to accept in principle the management of the Palestinian Authority by Netanyahu's cabinet forced his team to contradict itself hours later at the end of December.

Even without the involvement of the Palestinian Authority, Palestinian civilian control appears unacceptable to the Religious Zionist Party, the formation of Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich. He announced that he strongly opposed Gallant's plan because it would have been a repeat of the day before October 7. Smotrich, whose approval rating is falling in the polls, has already threatened to leave power if the Palestinians are in charge of civil affairs in Gaza.

Smotrich also wants to continue Jewish settlement activity in Gaza: nearly 22 settlements in the Strip, established before the unilateral withdrawal of the Israeli army in 2005, have been dismantled. He, as well as his Jewish Force counterpart, National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, want to encourage the voluntary emigration of Gazans.

Ben-Gvir and Smotrich's talk of Palestinians emigrating from Gaza - a "red line" for the Arab world - has been rebuked by Israeli officials in recent days. The US called it "irresponsible". And yesterday's debate on the subject in the office ended in a fight.

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