The dual objectives of rescuing the hostages and destroying Hamas are incompatible, four senior IDF commanders told the New York Times in an article published on Saturday.
The commanders spoke to the New York Times under the condition of anonymity because they are not permitted to speak publicly about their personal opinions.
They told the NYT that a drawn-out battle intended to fully dismantle Hamas would most likely cost the lives of the Israeli hostages held in Gaza since October 7.
The strategic difficulties have been made even worse by the indecisiveness of Israel's political leadership, with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's comments regarding the post-war plan being cited as part of the difficulty.
They told the Times that without long-term post-war plans for Gaza, the army was unable to make short-term tactical decisions about how to capture the parts of Gaza that remained in Hamas's hands.
Three of the commanders said that Egypt was unwilling to involve itself with Israel's operation without postwar guarantees.
The commanders also expressed their belief that further deterioration in foreign relations due to the war would impact their ability to keep Israel safe and sufficiently supplied.
A diplomatic solution is fastest way to rescue hostages
A diplomatic solution would be the fastest way of returning the Israelis who remain in captivity, according to three of the commanders.
They also told the NYT that Hamas's military infrastructure was more sophisticated than imagined, with estimations of Hamas's tunnel network being nearly four times larger than previously thought.
They added that they worried that any attempt to rescue the hostages would lead to their deaths in the tunnel network.