Netanyahu 70%-Gaza Directive Holds as Iran Pause and Lebanon Fighting Define Tuesday Morning
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s directive to expand Israeli control of Gaza to 70% of the territory remains in operational effect through Tuesday morning as Iran’s conditional pause and the continued Lebanon fighting define the regional posture. Since the October 10 ceasefire, Israel has killed at least 906 Palestinians and injured more than 2,747 others, per Al Jazeera’s ceasefire-violation tracker. Gaza’s health ministry says the Israeli campaign has killed at least 72,800 Palestinians since the war began in October 2023.
The 70%-control target represents a significant expansion of Israeli territorial control from the roughly 40-45% Israel was operating in before the directive. Critics — including some inside the Israeli security establishment — say the territorial-control objective is incompatible with the second-phase obligations Israel signed up to. The Tuesday-morning picture — IRGC paused but conditionally on Lebanon, Houthi Red Sea ban, Israeli army continuing Lebanon offensive, Netanyahu “Hezbollah in retreat” framing, Brent at $98.50 below Monday $100 peak, Gaza 70% directive holding — is the most operationally complex regional posture since the early-summer phase of the war began.