The sentiment among some in the general staff is straightforward: “The best time to decisively defeat Hamas is now.”

Over the past few months, mediators have hosted multiple rounds of talks with Hamas leadership in Cairo.

In every single one, Hamas has dug in its heels, refusing to implement the second phase of the ceasefire and begin disarming. With the most recent proposal rejected on April 14, senior military officials are stressing that the ultimate objective—ending Hamas’s rule in Gaza—has to be achieved, whether through diplomacy or force.