Overview

• The IDF is currently focused on systematic demolition of buildings in the neighborhoods of Zeitoun, Jabalia village, Shejaiya, and eastern Gaza City. 

• Jerusalem rejected Hamas’s offer of a cease-fire deal which would have left Hamas standing and holding on to 10 Israeli hostages after the war ends, maintaining its demand for the release of all hostages in one deal and not partial deal like before. The Trump administration publicly backed Israel’s position, with Trump himself declaring that Hamas must be militarily defeated and eradicated.

• On August 21, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced that he had approved the IDF’s plans to take control over  Gaza City. He emphasized that the war must end “on Israel’s terms” and that he had directed the immediate initiation of negotiations for the release of all hostages. The upcoming operation, dubbed “Gideon’s Chariots II”, will last for several months and is projected to continue well into 2026. It will involve five IDF divisions—three maneuvering directly inside Gaza City.

• Coordination with medical facilities in northern Gaza has intensified. An Israeli liaison officer instructed a senior hospital official to begin preparing for the transfer of all patients to southern hospitals.

• In Paris, a significant meeting took place between the Syrian…