Over 100 IDF officers who have served in Gaza signed a letter on Saturday addressed to the Security Cabinet saying not to let residents of Gaza return to their homes until the hostages are released.
The letter begins with the reiteration of the two main goals of the IDF in this war: The total destruction of Hamas and the successful release of all of the hostages.
According to the letter, the military operations in Gaza have been going fairly well until this point, and the officers expressed their appreciation for the progress being made toward these goals.
Mission not yet accomplished
However, the letter takes a shift in responding to recent developments in the war, including the IDF beginning to release reserve brigades and remove them from Gaza. "We see the IDF releasing brigades, and immediately the following questions arise: Did we achieve the goals that we set out to accomplish? What can we do with what we've achieved up until now?" the letter asked.
It proceeded to answer its own question by stating that the IDF and the Israeli government failed to turn the numerous small victories achieved around the Gaza Strip into an "overwhelming victory" to a systematic and strategic extent. Simply, the achievements until now have been significant but not enough to truly claim "mission accomplished," the officers argue.
The letter continued, claiming that it would be unfair to allow citizens of Gaza to their homes while there are still hostages that haven't been returned. The fact that hostages are still in captivity demands the simple equation, "there is no reason for Ahmed to return to his home in Gaza before Ziv and Gali return to their home in Kfar Aza," the letter states.
Returning Gazans complicates military operations
The officers continued, stating that achieving these goals would take time and that they were ok with that. They argued that if the IDF let Gazans return to their homes in the Strip before the goals of the war were achieved, it would produce undesirable effects, making the IDF's progress come to a standstill.
Conversely, should the Security Cabinet heed the letter, preventing Gazans from returning would provide the IDF with a number of benefits, the signators claimed.
These benefits listed in the letter included maintaining favorable fighting conditions in Gaza for IDF troops, preventing Hamas from disguising themselves as innocent civilians, keeping immense pressure on Hamas, and allowing the IDF to remain on the offensive instead of responding to Hamas's actions.
The letter concludes by urging the government to make the decision and to allow the IDF to continue in optimal conditions until the goals are achieved, stating, "We don't come back until we win."