Internal IDF document concludes months-long Gaza offensive failed

Israeli soldiers in Gaza, August 2025

Haaretz reports on 1 September 2025:

An internal Israel Defense Forces document concludes that the military’s recent months-long offensive in Gaza has failed, Channel 12 News reported on Sunday.

The document states that Israel made “every possible mistake,” waging a war “contrary to its own doctrine of warfare.” It adds that Hamas had “every condition to survive and win,” and that several of the war’s key objectives were not met: Hamas has not been defeated, and the hostages have not been returned, either through military action or a negotiated deal.

The document also asserts that Israel inadvertently provided resources to Hamas, depleted its own forces and lost international support.

It lists the main reasons for the failure of the operation, dubbed Gideon’s Chariots, which Israel launched in May. Among them, it says, the distribution of humanitarian aid was poorly planned and executed, which, according to the document, allowed Hamas to run an international “media campaign” portraying Gaza as facing widespread hunger. Other shortcomings cited include troops redeploying to areas where they had previously operated, and IDF combat methods that proved ill-suited to counter Hamas’ guerrilla tactics.

Alongside the failures, the document also outlines the operation’s achievements. It says Hamas’ infrastructure in the buffer zone the military created along the border with Israel, and in other regions, was completely destroyed, and that the IDF dealt severe blows to the group’s operatives and facilities. It also notes that the bodies of several hostages were recovered and that Hamas’ leadership suffered setbacks – particularly with the assassination of the group’s former Gaza leader, Mohammed Sinwar.

In response, the IDF said: “These contents were distributed without authorization and without approval from the relevant parties. The IDF met the objectives set for Operation Gideon’s Chariots and achieved numerous accomplishments.”

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