Overview

• Netanyahu will bring a plan to the political-security cabinet on July 29 to annex buffer zones in Gaza unless Hamas accepts a cease-fire within days.
• The staged annexation will start near Sderot, then progress through northern sectors up to Ashkelon before encompassing the entire Strip.
• President Trump’s administration has backed the proposal to strengthen Israel’s negotiating position against Hamas.
• Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich has tied his continued coalition membership to the plan’s implementation.
• The plan coincides with daily humanitarian pauses to allow aid convoys into Gaza; it risks drawing international condemnation and potential sanctions.