Netanyahu says Israel controls 60 percent of Gaza Strip

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared Thursday that Israeli forces now control 60 percent of the Gaza Strip, a statement that signals a military footprint well beyond what the October 2025 ceasefire agreement prescribed.

The announcement deepens uncertainty around stalled second-phase peace talks, which require Hamas to disarm and Israeli forces to gradually withdraw — conditions Netanyahu suggested hinge entirely on Hamas compliance.

Speaking at a ceremony marking Jerusalem Day in Jerusalem, Netanyahu offered a pointed summary of the military campaign. "We did not get out. Today we control 60 percent; tomorrow we shall see," Netanyahu said, according to The Korea Times.

The claim appears to depart from the terms of the October 2025 ceasefire, which called for Israeli forces to withdraw to a boundary negotiators designated the "Yellow Line" — a position corresponding to more than 50 percent territorial control. Israeli forces are instead reported to be pushing toward an "Orange Line," effectively expanding their presence rather than pulling back.

Netanyahu also asserted that the war had achieved one of its central stated goals: the return of every person abducted during the October 7, 2023 Hamas attacks. "We brought back home all our hostages, up to the last one," he said.

Despite the truce, daily violence has not abated. The Gaza health ministry reported more than 850 Palestinians killed since the ceasefire took effect in October 2025, according to The Korea Times. Five Israeli soldiers have also died during the same period.

The second phase of negotiations — centered on Hamas disarmament and a staged Israeli military withdrawal — has stalled. Netanyahu framed further progress as conditional on Hamas compliance, while talks between the militant group and international mediators have failed to advance.

Netanyahu closed his Jerusalem Day address by invoking the resilience he said the past two years had revealed. "In the past two years we have shown the entire world what mighty forces are embedded in our people, in our state, in our army, in our heritage," he said.