Some 60,000 Israeli reservists were set to receive call-up orders that the military will issue starting Wednesday for an offensive against Hamas in Gaza City, after Defense Minister Israel Katz approved the army’s plans, according to the Israel Defense Forces and security officials.
The orders were not immediate, but rather were slated to take place in several waves. The majority — around 40,000-50,000 — would be ordered to show up for duty on September 2. Another wave would take place in November-December, and a third wave in February-March 2026, the IDF said.
The number of reservists being called up is in addition to tens of thousands of reservists who are currently serving in the reserves.
The IDF said it was also extending reserve duty for some 20,000 reservists who were currently on duty by another 30-40 days. This would bring the total number of reservists at a given time during the offensive to around 130,000.
The reservists included three brigades and several more battalions, and many combat support soldiers, including in intelligence and logistics.
Not all of the reservists are expected to participate in the operation to capture Gaza City, as some will instead be replacing standing army troops on other fronts.
In all, five IDF divisions, made up of tens of thousands of troops, were set to participate in the military’s planned offensive against Hamas in Gaza City, according to the army.
The forces included 12 brigade-level teams, each of which has infantry, armored, artillery, and combat engineering forces, along with combat support. In addition, the Gaza Division’s northern and southern brigades — normally tasked with the border — are set to participate in the offensive, bringing the total number of brigades to 14.
The reserve call-up orders were sent out after Katz met Tuesday with IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir, other senior officers, and Shin Bet representatives to approve the military’s plans for the capture of Gaza City, his office said.
The Gaza City takeover offensive — which Katz approved — was dubbed “Gideon’s Chariots B,” following a previous operation of the same name, which saw the IDF take over 75% of the Strip’s territory in an attempt to pressure Hamas into a hostage deal.
A security source said Katz praised the IDF’s plan and preparations during the meeting, which came after the government instructed the military to capture Gaza City.
The military said the preparation phases for the offensive have already begun, with an ongoing offensive on the outskirts of Gaza City. The Nahal Infantry Brigade and 7th Armored Brigade have been operating in the Zeitoun neighborhood, and the Givati Infantry Brigade began a new offensive in the Kafr Jabalia area, north of the city.
In addition, the IDF said efforts to set up humanitarian infrastructure in the Strip’s south for the estimated one million Palestinian civilians who are set to be displaced from Gaza City have started, including allowing tents and shelter equipment into the Strip in recent days.
Katz, during the meeting, approved “humanitarian preparations” for the offensive, his office said.
The military said more aid distribution sites and at least two more field hospitals are set to be established. The European Hospital in Khan Younis, which was closed after the IDF raided a Hamas tunnel running underneath it, was also slated to resume operations.
“As part of the preparations to move the population from Gaza City to the southern Gaza Strip, talks have begun with international organizations to recruit them to establish additional field hospitals in the south, and there is a positive response to this,” a security official said Wednesday.
The official said “there are also plans to expand the existing medical infrastructure in the south in cooperation with the organizations, and in addition, options are being examined to open access routes to additional medical facilities.”
“The UN and the organizations have begun formulating a plan to restart the European Hospital as an additional medical response,” the official added.
The IDF’s offensive in Gaza City is set to be carried out in several stages, beginning with an evacuation warning for the civilians in the area. Israeli officials have previously said that Palestinians will have until October 7, 2025, to evacuate Gaza City, which coincides with the second anniversary of Hamas’s attack on Israel.
The IDF will then encircle Gaza City before pushing in deeper into the city, including reaching areas that were previously not completely cleared of Hamas infrastructure, military officials said.
The meeting and the presentation of the army’s plans to Katz came despite Hamas saying Monday that it had agreed to a truce proposal. Should a hostage-ceasefire deal be reached, the plans to capture Gaza City are likely to be called off.
The plans, approved by Katz Tuesday night, were set to be presented to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday.
Though Netanyahu has appeared to dismiss Hamas’s acceptance of the offer, after shifting from insisting on a phased hostage release and ceasefire deal to the release of all the captives at one go, sources said Tuesday that Jerusalem was reviewing the proposal.
Terror groups in the Gaza Strip are holding 50 hostages, including 49 of the 251 abducted by Hamas-led terrorists on October 7, 2023. They include the bodies of at least 28 confirmed dead by the IDF. Twenty are believed to be alive and there are grave concerns for the well-being of two others, Israeli officials have said. Hamas is also holding the body of an IDF soldier killed in Gaza in 2014.
