The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) continued to expand ground operations that began in Gaza on March 19 after conducting renewed airstrikes on the territory on March 18. The moves come slightly more than two weeks after the first phase of a ceasefire with Hamas expired, and Hamas and Israel could not agree on an extension.
Israel has dubbed the new operation “Strength and Sword.” The latest ground operations have been accompanied by limited airstrikes, generally conducted at night, against key Hamas officials in Gaza. The new operation is designed to pressure Hamas to release hostages, Israeli officials have said. Fifty-nine hostages are still held in Gaza, and slightly more than half of them are believed to be deceased.
The IDF said on March 21 that it expanded ground operations into the Shabura area in the city of Rafah. Israeli troops have controlled the Philadelphi Corridor in southern Gaza along the Egyptian border since May 2024, along with portions of Rafah, which took several months to clear of terrorists. Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar was killed in October 2024 as a result of these operations. The IDF had withdrawn from most of Gaza due to the January 19 ceasefire with Hamas. However, Israeli forces remained along the Philadelphi Corridor, making it easy to re-enter areas in Rafah.
The Israeli military said troops dismantled terrorist infrastructure in Rafah in the most recent operation without specifying what unit was involved. The IDF has said that it positioned the Golani Brigade for potential operations in Gaza. Golani is usually part of the 36th Division, which also includes the 188th Armored Brigade. The 36th played a key role in initial ground maneuvers in Gaza in October and November 2023 after Hamas’s attack on Israel on October 7, 2023. The Golani Brigade suffered heavy losses on October 7 and took additional casualties in the first battles in Gaza. It later moved to northern Israel but is now back near the territory.
The IDF also moved troops from the 252nd Division into the Netzarim Corridor on March 19, retaking the Salah al Din Road. The IDF had held this key junction from late October 2023 until February 2025, when troops withdrew as part of the ceasefire deal. The road runs north-south in Gaza, connecting Rafah to Khan Younis, central Gaza, and Gaza City. The Netzarim Corridor runs east-west across Gaza, cutting off Gaza City from central Gaza. By taking the Salah al Din Road, Gazans can only reach northern Gaza along the coastal Al Rashid Road. The 252nd Division is one of two divisions, the other being the 99th, that ran the corridor in 2024 and rotated control between the units every three months.
The IDF also expanded ground operations in northern Gaza’s Beit Lahiya. This area had been cleared of Hamas in the past and is very close to the Israeli border. The 188th Armored Brigade sent units into Beit Lahiya.
The overall campaign is now a three- or four-pronged series of limited ground operations in Gaza. So far, each effort is small and mostly led by regular IDF units, except the 252nd, which is a reserve division.
The IDF describes the operations as “targeted ground activities” that are expanding the “security zone” on the border of Gaza, intending to create a “buffer between northern and southern Gaza.” Israeli forces also demolished a Turkish-Palestinian Friendship Hospital in the Netzarim Corridor. The hospital had ceased to function in 2024, and the IDF said Hamas was using the structure.
The IDF has called on Gazans in Arabic to leave several areas since March 18, including portions of northern Gaza near the coast, Bani Suheila near Khan Younis, and various locations near the Israeli border. Hamas has responded to the Israeli offensive by launching several small rocket salvos. One salvo targeted central Israel on March 20, and another targeted the city of Ashkelon near Gaza on March 21.
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said on March 21 that he had instructed the IDF to “seize additional areas in Gaza while evacuating the population” and stated the goal of the operation is to get Hamas to release the 59 Israeli hostages. “If the Hamas terrorist organization continues to refuse to release the hostages, I have instructed the IDF to seize additional territories. […] The more Hamas continues its refusal, the more territory it will lose and be annexed to Israel,” Katz said.
The new offensive is the first major IDF operation under new IDF Chief of Staff Lieutenant General Eyal Zamir, who took command on March 5. Zamir met with IDF troops in Rafah on March 18, including Brigadier General Barak Hiram, the commander of the Gaza Division, and members of the Givati Brigade. He also held an assessment with the IDF’s Southern Command on March 21.
