Reserve General Giora Eiland, a career IDF officer, former head of the Navy and National Security Council, a familiar media commentator on military affairs, said in an interview on Army Radio that Israel has an “existential” need to reassert deterrence and to bring about with overwhelming force an internal movement to replace the Hamas leadership by creating unbearable conditions for the civilian population.

He advised that Israel must take draconian measures to destroy Hamas. He specifically advised that Israeli must give the population of Gaza 12 to 24 hours to leave the Strip or to the nearest beach, after which Israel should destroy every structure in the area, including hospitals, schools and mosques, all of which Hamas uses for weapon storage and meetings.

Eiland further suggested that it was necessary to create conditions of hunger and thirst among Gazans so that they would rise up and replace their leadership.

Asked by the interviewer if he was aware of the severity of his recommendations, Eiland affirmed that Israeli now faced an “existential” threat and it is “us or them.” He compared the Hamas surprise attack to Pearl Harbor in its shocking impact, and said that the German and Japanese people who backed their government had to suffer for the malignant regime to be replaced.

Eitan Dangot, former Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT), echoed Eiland’s opinion, writing in a post on X (formerly Twitter) that as a result of the actions of Hamas, Israel has no humanitarian obligation toward Gaza.

“The humanitarian axis does not exit toward Hamas except in exchange [for something],” he wrote. “No water, no electricity, no fuel, no goods, no medicine. There is no obligation for anything. Within four to five days Gaza is under pressure.”

This, he said, is the only way to deal with Hamas to release the captives.