Architect of so-called Generals' Plan admits Israel's 'absolute failure' in Gaza
The architect of Israel's so-called Generals' Plan to depopulate northern Gaza has described the country's war in the enclave as an "absolute failure".
The original plan, also known as the Eiland Plan after its creator Giora Eiland, a retired major general and former head of the Israeli National Security Council, was seen by Palestinians and rights groups as part of a long-term project of ethnic cleansing that would result in the restablishment of Jewish settlements in Gaza.
However, writing in a comment piece for Ynet, Eiland said that Israel had failed to achieve its aims in Gaza.
"Israel has failed in three-and-a-half out of the four goals of the war: we have not demolished Hamas’ military power; we have not overthrown Hamas’ rule; we are not managing to return the residents... safely to their homes [in Israel], and as for the return of the abductees, the fourth goal – we have partially succeeded," he wrote.
He claimed Hamas had, conversely, "achieved all of its goals, chief among them: continuing its rule in Gaza."
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Eiland added that part of the problem was that the Israeli government had treated Hamas as purely a "terrorist" organisation when it had already established state power in Gaza, comparing them to Nazi Germany rather than the Islamic State (IS) group, as Prime Minister Benjamin Netayahu had done.
The Generals' Plan was published in late September 2024 by the Forum of Commanders and Soldiers in the Reserves, an Israeli NGO that defines itself as a professional body comprising more than 1,500 army officers.
In an interview on 29 October 2023, only weeks into the war, Eiland said that Israel needed to exert much stronger pressure on Hamas to achieve total victory.
"The fact that we are breaking down in the face of humanitarian aid to Gaza is a serious mistake... Gaza must be completely destroyed: terrible chaos, severe humanitarian crisis, cries to heaven..."
And in December 2023 he suggested that if Hamas was not willing to discuss Israeli hostages then humanitarian aid should be cut in the hope of ultimately deposing the Hamas leadership.
There has been discussion about whether the Generals' Plan was partly underway during the Gaza war, which killed more than 60,000 Palestinians and saw millions displaced.
In Israel, rights groups including Gisha, B'Tselem, Physicians for Human Rights-Israel and Yesh Din, said in October 2024 there were "alarming signs" that the plan was being implemented.
Other Israeli experts have said, however, that they believed the Generals' Plan was "complete nonsense" and predicated on pre-7 October dynamics that were no longer relevant.
Captive releases delayed
Eiland's most recent comments come after Hamas said it would delay the release of the next tranche of Israeli captives "until further notice", accusing Israel of failing to comply with the terms of the ceasefire deal.
The group was due to release some Israelis on 15 February in exchange for Palestinian prisoners and detainees.
However, Abu Obaida, spokesman for Hamas's armed wing the Qassam Brigades, said this would be "postponed until further notice, pending the occupation's compliance and retroactive fulfilment of the past weeks' obligations".
"We reaffirm our commitment to the terms of the agreement as long as the occupation adheres to them," he added.
Abu Obaida said the delay would continue until Israel halted its attacks on Palestinians returning to their homes in Gaza and allowed aid into the enclave at previously-agreed-to levels.
Israel's defence minister, Israel Katz, said this move from Hamas was "a complete violation of the ceasefire agreement and the deal to release the hostages".
He said he had instructed the military "to prepare at the highest level of alert for any possible scenario in Gaza".
Former cabinet member Itamar Ben Gvir called for "a massive air and ground offensive on Gaza and a complete halt to humanitarian aid, including electricity, fuel, and water".
However, the Hostages and Missing Families Forum, which advocates for the Israeli captives, said it had turned to the mediating countries for an intervention "that would restore the deal's implementation" and called on the government to "refrain from actions that jeopardise the signed agreement's implementation".
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