The Day After

For now, the war against Iran is dominating the Israel Defense Force (IDF) but Israel has plans for Hamas once the attacks on Iran are over according to a report from World Israel News:

Israel’s defense establishment is gearing up for a new ground operation in the Gaza Strip, security officials say, once the air campaign against Iran has been completed. On Sunday, Israel Hayom published a report citing Israeli officials with knowledge of the IDF’s preparations for renewed hostilities in the Gaza Strip.

Some see the offensive against Iran will end soon:

The IDF expects Operation Roaring Lion against the Islamic Republic to continue for several more weeks, during which no major operations will be undertaken in Gaza.

One article in Israel Hayom is saying that US President Donald Trump is giving Israel one more week:

A senior political source from the Middle East tells Israel Hayom that the US wants the military campaign against Iran to end, and has given Israel just one week to conclude it. The source also assessed that the regime in Tehran is unlikely to be replaced, because such a change would require either a ground invasion by troops or the renewal of large-scale protests inside Iran, something the source does not believe will happen in the near future.

The issues is how the war with Iran is viewed:

According to the senior source, there is a major gap between how the war is viewed in the US and how it is seen in Israel. In Washington, the source said, officials are worried about the impact on oil prices, whereas Israel sees the war as an achievement and is celebrating it.

Giving Them A Demand

Going back to the original article, Israel will give Hamas one last change to surrender or else:

However, once the war with Iran has ended, Israel is expected to issue an ultimatum to Hamas, giving the terror group a deadline for disarming – or facing a new IDF offensive in Gaza.

Israeli officials believe Hamas is unlikely to accept disarmament, thus making an IDF operation virtually inevitable.

Unlike the fighting up until now, the IDF isn’t going to leave going to be flexible this time:

According to the Israel Hayom report, military planners are eyeing a new kind of ground campaign in Gaza. Unlike the past IDF operations in the coastal enclave, the proposed operation will not be an open-ended ground invasion. Rather, officials describe it as a final stage in the war with Hamas, with the goal of disarming the terror group, demilitarizing the Gaza Strip, and dismantling Hamas’ remaining military and arms manufacturing capabilities.

The logic is that the Hamas of today is vastly weaker than the one they were at the start:

The IDF estimates that Hamas has suffered serious damage from the two years of war with Israel, though the terror group still retains significant capabilities, and is working to expand its arsenal, with smuggling efforts – including drone-based smuggling – via Egypt and southern Israel.

The IDF hasn’t lost track of Hamas during the attacks on Iran:

While Israel has curtailed the large-scale rearmament operations in Gaza, the IDF has continued to detect smaller weapons smuggling attempts.

Overall, the IDF wants to end the terrorists threats from Hamas as well as Hezbollah sooner than later. They are currently in Southern Lebanon to deal with the terrorist there so adding Hamas to the list won’t be out of the question. In my view I can see Hamas and Hezbollah, the Houthi rebels in Yemen and every other Iranian proxy opening a full scale attack on Israel while they are in the thick of striking Iran. Think Psalm 83. If the demand from the US for Israel to end that conflict in a week I can totally see them having to go it alone with these threats and them unleashing military power no one has seen before. The IDF would then be seen as the superpower of the Middle East just as prophesied:

So I prophesied as He commanded me, and breath came into them, and they lived, and stood upon their feet, an exceedingly great army. (Ezekiel 37:10, NKJV)

Some still see diplomacy working even now, but as we pray for the peace of Jerusalem we need to pray the fighting ends all this. Those against Israel want to be martyrs so I say let’s honor their wishes. In Christian love, though.