A collective of around 600 retired Israeli security personnel, which includes former leaders of intelligence agencies, has reached out to US President Donald Trump to urge Israel to promptly conclude the war in Gaza.
"We believe based on our professional experience that Hamas no longer represents a strategic danger to Israel," the officials stated.
"Your reputation among the vast majority of Israelis enhances your capacity to guide Prime Minister [Benjamin] Netanyahu and his administration towards a better course of action: cease the war, bring back the hostages, and alleviate the suffering," they expressed.
This request emerges amid reports that Netanyahu is advocating for a broadening of military actions in Gaza as indirect ceasefire discussions with Hamas have stalled.
Following Hamas's assault in southern Israel on 7 October 2023, which resulted in approximately 1,200 deaths and 251 kidnappings, Israel initiated a destructive military campaign in Gaza.
According to the Hamas-controlled health ministry, over 60,000 fatalities have occurred in Gaza as a result of Israel's military actions since that time.
On Monday, the ministry reported that at least 94 individuals had died in Gaza over the past day, including many whom they claim were killed in Israeli airstrikes.
The ministry also noted that a minimum of 24 people were killed while attempting to obtain aid. These types of reports have become nearly routine in recent months but are difficult to verify due to restrictions on international journalists, including those from the BBC, being prohibited from independently entering Gaza.
The area is also facing widespread deprivation caused by stringent limits imposed by Israel regarding what can be brought into Gaza. The ministry states that since the beginning of the war, 180 individuals, including 93 children, have succumbed to malnutrition.
UN-backed organizations have indicated that the "worst-case scenario of famine is unfolding" in Gaza.
The recent comments from high-ranking former Israeli officials followed the publication of videos showing two severely malnourished Israeli hostages by Hamas and Islamic Jihad militants.
Israeli and Western leaders widely condemned the release of these videos.
In response to the videos, Netanyahu reached out to the families of the hostages, assuring them that efforts to bring all hostages home "will continue constantly and relentlessly."
However, an Israeli official, frequently cited by local media outlets, indicated that Netanyahu was pursuing the release of the hostages through "the military defeat of Hamas."
The potential for a new escalation in Gaza could provoke further anger among Israel's allies, who have been advocating for an immediate ceasefire, especially as reports of Palestinians suffering from starvation or malnutrition shock the international community.
The primary organization that supports the families of hostages denounced the notion of a renewed military offensive, stating: "Netanyahu is leading Israel and the hostages to doom."
This perspective was notably expressed in a letter to Trump by former Mossad chief Tamir Pardo, Ami Ayalon, the ex-chief of Shin Bet—the domestic security agency—former Prime Minister Ehud Barak, and former Defense Minister Moshe Yaalon, among others.
Ayalon remarked, "Initially, this war was a just war, a defensive war, but after we achieved all military objectives, this war ceased to be a just war."
The former leaders are part of the Commanders for Israel's Security (CIS) group, which has previously urged the government to concentrate on ensuring the safe return of the hostages.
"Stop the Gaza War! On behalf of CIS, Israel's largest association of former IDF generals and equivalents from Mossad, Shin Bet, the police, and the diplomatic corps, we appeal to you to conclude the Gaza war. You accomplished this in Lebanon. It’s time to do the same in Gaza," they expressed in a letter to the U.S. president.
Israel is experiencing heightened international isolation as the extensive devastation in Gaza and the plight of Palestinians incite public outrage.
Surveys globally indicate that attitudes toward Israel are growing increasingly unfavorable, which is intensifying the pressure on Western leaders to intervene.
However, it remains uncertain what kind of pressure, if any, Trump will choose to apply on the Israeli prime minister.
The US president has consistently supported his ally, even though he publicly acknowledged last week that there was "real starvation" occurring in Gaza, despite Netanyahu's claim that no such situation existed.
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