Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he will convene the security cabinet this week to set new battlefield instructions for the Gaza war, after indirect ceasefire negotiations with Hamas broke down. The meeting, tentatively scheduled for Thursday, will be attended by Defence Minister Israel Katz, IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir and other senior officials, according to the Prime Minister’s Office and Israeli media reports. Local outlets Channel 12 and the Jerusalem Post report that Netanyahu intends to seek authorisation for a full military takeover of the Gaza Strip—Israel’s most far-reaching proposal since it withdrew troops and settlers in 2005. The plan would expand operations into areas where fighting has been limited so far and could reverse the 20-year-old disengagement policy. Military leaders and a majority of public opinion are said to oppose a comprehensive occupation, warning it could endanger the roughly 49 hostages still believed to be alive in Gaza and drag the army into an open-ended ground campaign. In the latest internal consultations, Lt. Gen. Zamir reportedly voiced reservations but affirmed that forces would carry out any decision adopted by the political leadership. Netanyahu’s push comes amid mounting international pressure for a ceasefire to alleviate acute food shortages and rising civilian casualties in the enclave. Far-right members of his governing coalition, however, have pressed for the ‘conquest’ of Gaza, arguing that only complete control will ensure Hamas’s defeat and prevent future attacks on Israel.