With the ceasefire now just a dot on the tragic timeline, Israel's leaders have approved a plan that will have Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) enter and claim parts of Gaza in phases, holding the territory indefinitely. There will be planned strikes against Hamas targets during the acquisition of land.
This latest mission is not bound by the calendar.
Chris Mitchell, Middle East bureau chief for CBN News, relayed to "Washington Watch" Monday that before Israel's security cabinet voted to approve the plan, IDF leaders explained that Gideon's Chariots will be a dangerous mission that could mean loss of life for troops and possibly hostages who continue to be held by Hamas.
The plan is "going to be vast, decisive," Mitchell told show host Tony Perkins. "It will take time, though, to get up to its maximum effect."
Israel currently controls an estimated 30% of Gaza, Mitchell said, and the IDF has "done a lot of infrastructure [work] to make sure that this plan goes into effect."
The new approach comes as Israel has responded with missile strikes against a Yemen port following a rare failure by Israel's Iron Dome defense system. In the past few weeks, Israel has shot down 26 of 27 missiles fired from Yemen by the Iran-backed Houthis.
The one that got through landed in an unpopulated area of Tel Aviv's main airport.
The objective of Operation Gideon's Chariots is to further weaken Hamas until the terrorist group can no longer threaten Israel. Part of the plan includes the IDF overseeing the distribution of humanitarian aid to prevent its theft by Hamas and to guarantee the aid reaches the Palestinian people.
"We want our troops to fight against a tired, hungry, and exhausted enemy, not one that has supplies and aid coming from outside the strip," Israel's Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich said in a statement.
IDF troops will secure a perimeter around aid distribution points.
"This will make sure that [aid] gets directly to the people in need," Mitchell said.
Hamas, which began the conflict by murdering more than 1,200 Israeli citizens on Oct. 7, 2023, calls Israel's control of aid distribution in Gaza a violation of international law, The Associated Press reports.
Will the reservists be in place?
As many as 100,000 reservists will be called up to execute the new plan.
"That's where [Israeli leaders] believe they need to go to really bring an end to this war eventually, by taking away Hamas' advantage and trying to take the territory that Hamas has been trying to keep," Mitchell explained.
But Gideon's Chariots may put pressure on what appears to be dwindling IDF resources, as a growing number of soldiers showi displease with a war they see as continuing for political reasons, The Associated Press reports.
In mid-April, roughly 1,000 Air Force veterans signed a letter calling for an end to the war in Gaza. The IDF responded by saying it would dismiss any active reservists who signed the document, but in the days following, thousands of retired and reservist soldiers across all branches signed similar letters, according to The AP.
Fox News notes that the IDF has also vowed to increase operations against the Houthis in Yemen, with Israel Defense Minister Israel Katz saying, "Whoever harms us, we will strike them sevenfold."
The Houthis, for now, remain able to function despite aggressive strikes from both Israel and the U.S.
"After several weeks of a U.S. bombing campaign and the Israeli campaign that has been going on even before the U.S. campaign, how can they do that? The explanation that I've heard is that for years they've been hiding these mobile launchers throughout the desert. So, they've been able to pull these out when they can and fire them," Mitchell detailed.
Attacks by the Houthis, once sending Israeli citizens running into bomb shelters in the middle of the night, have been coming in daylight more recently. The reason is daylight makes it harder for U.S. and Israeli defense systems to lock in on a heat signature and track the missiles.
The main reason the Houthis are still around
Mitchell said the other reason the Houthis are still active is simply because Iran, the "mastermind behind supplying these ICBMs to the Houthis," are the ones "controlling the policy by their arms."
He is certain that an Israeli attack on Iran will happen at some point.
"Prime Minister [Benjamin] Netanyahu said … they're going to make sure that they hit Iran as well because of these strikes against Israel, particularly the one at the airport," Mitchell noted.
Fox News calls the Gaza strategy ambitious and says it will only take effect if a hostage deal is not reached before President Trump arrives for his visit to the region on May 13.
