Dividing Gaza into Four Fronts: Inside ‘Israel’s Plan’ to Occupy the Strip

Since the start of the ground incursion, the Israeli Occupation forces have divided Gaza into two main sectors, separating the population into northern and southern zones.

However, with the challenge of eliminating Hamas, “Israel” has begun adding new divisions within these two main sectors, bringing the total to four fronts so far.

By creating additional “military zones,” the Israeli Occupation aims to streamline targeting Palestinian resistance forces, isolate them, displace residents, and reoccupy Gaza to establish settlements.

In November 2024, Israeli media outlets, including Haaretz, revealed Israeli Occupation’s intent to reoccupy Gaza by dividing it into four separate and disconnected zones.

Four Fronts

The first and most well-known axis is located in the Netzarim area, which divides Gaza's north from its south. This axis became infamous at the start of the Israeli genocide, as it was used to forcefully displace residents to the south.

Previously, the area was home to the Netzarim settlement before the Israeli withdrawal in 2005 under pressure from Palestinian resistance. The Israeli forces have established a military axis in the area, 8 kilometers wide and 7 kilometers long, cutting Gaza horizontally from east to west and vertically from north to south.

This axis, which has now become a military base, prevents the hundreds of thousands of displaced residents from returning to their homes in the north.

The second axis is the Salah al-Din or Philadelphi route along the Palestinian-Egyptian border. Israeli forces concentrated here after they stormed the Rafah crossing and city in southern Gaza in May 2024. 

With this control, “Israel” sealed the border crossing, cutting off the movement of people and aid, while also blocking the entry of supplies into Gaza. Despite international calls for opening the crossing, “Israel” maintained its grip on the area under the pretext of disrupting Hamas' military infrastructure and preventing weapon smuggling through border tunnels.

Hamas has repeatedly denied the existence of tunnels, which were flooded by Egypt under the presidencies of Hosni Mubarak and Abdel Fattah el-Sisi. Israeli Occupation’s refusal to withdraw from the first two axes has hindered all ceasefire attempts and negotiations for a prisoner swap deal since the temporary truce in November 2023.

As the prisoner swap negotiations stalled, “Israel” initiated new plans, the most recent being the establishment of the third axis, named Jabalia or “Mefalsim,” which divides northern Gaza from Gaza City. Israeli media outlets reported on November 10, 2024, that the Israeli military was carving out this axis, which extends from the far east of Jabalia to the Mediterranean coast, near the town of Beit Lahia.

This axis' creation followed weeks of promotion for the “Generals' Plan,” aimed at depopulating northern Gaza to facilitate settlement expansion. The plan, revealed by Yedioth Ahronoth on September 4, 2024, seeks to turn the area north of the Netzarim corridor into a military zone, with the forced evacuation of residents and a siege to either force Gaza resistance fighters to surrender or die.

The plan, devised by former Israeli military officials, calls for evacuating civilians within weeks and imposing a blockade to break Hamas. It followed Israeli Occupation’s failure to convince Gaza clans to govern small areas, a pilot project they hoped would expand if successful.

The fourth and final axis is named “Kissufim,” an old crossing point east of Gaza, which “Israel” reopened and rehabilitated to facilitate the entry of aid into the southern Gaza strip, as claimed by the Israeli army on November 12. “Israel” had previously released images of construction and repairs in the area on November 8, ahead of its reopening.

The “Kissufim” crossing had been a key access point for residents of the Gush Katif settlement in southern Gaza but had been closed since Israeli Occupation’s withdrawal. Palestinians see the reopening as a pretext for creating the fourth axis, dividing Gaza's central region from its south, extending from the eastern border to the Mediterranean coast.

The Israeli Occupation’s blockade of aid to both the north and south, coupled with its tacit support for gang looting, is widely seen by Palestinians as a deliberate strategy to strengthen "Israel's" hold over Gaza.

The common thread connecting all these corridors is the extensive destruction and leveling of the land that preceded their establishment, coupled with heavy aerial bombardment—clear indications of Israeli Occupation’s intent to maintain a long-term presence, paving the way for occupation and displacement.

Displacement and Occupation

Regarding recent developments in “Israel’s” efforts to control Gaza, The New York Times said "Israel is building and fortifying military bases in central Gaza, suggesting that it plans to remain there.

“Over the past three months, soldiers have demolished more than 600 buildings around the road in an apparent attempt to create a buffer zone. They have also rapidly expanded a network of outposts equipped with communications towers and defensive fortifications,” NYT reported.

“The buildup suggests a shift for Israel, which had largely avoided holding Gazan territory, creating a vacuum that has allowed Hamas to reassert control in some parts of Gaza.”

The military expansion has fueled speculation about Israeli Occupation’s future plans for Gaza, as Israeli leaders have vowed to maintain security control in the region even after the war ends. Some Israeli ministers have repeatedly stated that military control over Gaza should pave the way for the resumption of Jewish settlement, although Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu currently denies this, despite on-the-ground realities and satellite imagery suggesting otherwise.

Far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich has declared that Israeli forces should occupy Gaza and “encourage” around half of the Palestinian civilian population to leave within two years. National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir shares a similar view.

The Times analyzed satellite images over the last three months, revealing that “Israel” has at least 19 large military bases and dozens of smaller ones in the Netzarim area. While some of these bases were constructed earlier in the Israeli war on Gaza, recent photos show an accelerated pace of construction, with 12 bases built or expanded since early September. Many of these installations are surrounded by walls, trenches, defensive mounds, and obstacles, and are equipped with barracks, access roads, and armored vehicle parking.

The extensive fortifications suggest that “Israel” is preparing for a prolonged military presence in Gaza. Avi Dichter, Israeli food minister and former head of Shin Bet, stated that “Israel” will remain in Gaza for a long time. Avi Dichter, an Israeli government minister, said “Israel” was “going to stay in Gaza for a long time.”

“We are definitely not at the beginning of the end, because we still have a lot of work to do,” Dichter told reporters in Jerusalem.

Amir Avivi, a retired brigadier general who is regularly briefed by Israeli Occupation’s security establishment, said many of the country’s military leaders now believed “withdrawing and separation are no longer options.”

“That’s why they’re building all of this,” said Avivi, who leads a forum of hawkish former security officials. “At the end of the day, the facts speak for themselves.”

In November, Netanyahu visited the Netzarim corridor in a rare incursion into Gaza, praising the Israeli forces' progress. He stated that the military had achieved “an amazing work.” “They have achieved excellent results toward our important objective — Hamas will not rule in Gaza,” he added.

As for the new axis dividing northern Gaza from Gaza City, BBC reported on November 28 that Israeli forces are destroying hundreds of buildings between the Mediterranean Sea and the dividing border to facilitate their control over the besieged enclave.

Dr H A Hellyer, a Middle East security expert from the Rusi think tank, said the satellite images suggested Israel was preparing to block Palestinian civilians from returning to the north Gaza governorate. More than 100,000 people have already been displaced from the far north of Gaza, according to the UN.

Some analysts believe the military positioning indicates a permanent military division, allowing “Israel” to control movement between Gaza and the northern governorates. Hellyer said of the Israeli Occupation Forces, “They’re digging in for the long term. I would absolutely expect the north partition to develop exactly like the Netzarim Corridor.”

Eado Hecht of the Begin-Sadat Center for Strategic Studies (BESA) noted that the three axes (Philadelphia, Netzarim, and Jabalia) are aimed at securing control, with their duration dependent on the war’s outcome and its conclusion.

In a previous report, Haaretz also stated that “Israel” is preparing infrastructure, expanding roads, and constructing large facilities in Gaza, all indicating plans to maintain its presence in the territory until at least the end of 2025.

“The work is progressing at full speed. What was a dirt embankment with the rubble of destroyed buildings a few months ago is now a very active construction site. Wide roads are being built, cellular antennas are going up, water, sewage and electricity networks are going in and of course there are the buildings, some portable and others less so,” the report said.

Devastating Impacts

The rapid division of Gaza, a territory spanning just 360 square kilometers, has turned life for its residents into a living nightmare. Families have been torn apart, isolated between the north, south, and central regions, making movement and reunions nearly impossible.

Gazans now endure some of the harshest conditions imaginable, with tens of thousands forced into tents, schools, and streets under dire health conditions. Movement between the north and south is heavily restricted, leaving countless families stranded away from their homes and exacerbating their suffering.

This military control is also weaponized to manipulate aid distribution, channeling resources to specific areas while depriving others in a punitive strategy that has triggered widespread hunger. For instance, “Israel” has withheld aid from northern Gaza residents as punishment for refusing to evacuate south, using starvation as a weapon.

Currently, southern residents face similar tactics, as minimal aid is allowed through to burnish Israeli image internationally, while coordinated raids by armed groups and gangs—reportedly working alongside Israeli forces—loot what little resources do arrive.

The establishment of military corridors has intensified the targeting of civilians, expanding areas under Israeli control and enabling the indiscriminate killing of anyone moving near these zones.

Journalist Mohammed Suliman highlights that roads linking these corridors are particularly perilous, exposing travelers to constant threats. Speaking to Al-Estiklal, he explained how these corridors have geographically and socially fragmented Gaza, uprooting families and subjecting them to continuous displacement.

Suliman, who resides in Khan Yunis, warned that the central region could soon be entirely cut off from the north and south. He pointed to the recently reopened Deir al-Balah crossing as a potential precursor to isolating and dominating the area further.

For residents, fears are unrelenting. Military checkpoints and bases scattered across Gaza loom as an omnipresent nightmare.

Among the most devastating consequences of Gaza’s division is the collapse of its healthcare system. Doctors face immense challenges in reaching patients with urgent or severe conditions, while the mobility of emergency responders, rescue teams, and municipal workers is severely restricted.

“If you’re injured today in northern Gaza and your wounds are moderate to severe, you’ll die without receiving care,” Hamza al-Kahlout told Al-Estiklal, the displaced resident explained how the incursion has made him a permanent refugee in southern Gaza, living at the mercy of the Netzarim corridor, which cuts him off from his home.

The 30-year-old doesn’t know the fate of his neighborhood or his house, which has been repeatedly raided and left in ruins by Israeli forces.

“This war is unlike any before—not just because of its duration but because of Israel’s far-reaching plans,” he said. “No one in Gaza doubts that the military expansion over our destroyed homes signals the return of settlement projects.”