Israel appears to be backing away from a full-scale invasion of the Gaza Strip and instead pursuing more limited ground incursions, at least initially, in line with suggestions that US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin has made to his Israeli counterparts in recent days, US officials said. New York Times on Saturday.

Biden administration officials cautioned that it was difficult to say what Israel would ultimately do, as increased airstrikes and expanded ground incursions over the past three days signaled a more aggressive stance.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said late Saturday that Israeli forces had entered the Gaza Strip on Friday to begin the “second phase of the war,” though he did not mention the word “invasion.”

Military officials said on Saturday that Israeli forces had entered the northern part of the enclave on Friday and remained there overnight on Saturday, an unprecedented move.

The massive invasion of the Gaza Strip alarmed the United States

According to NYT sources, Israeli ground forces’ incursions into Gaza to date have been more limited than those reported by Israeli military officials to the US Secretary of Defense and other senior US military officials.

Israel’s initial plan to launch an Israeli ground offensive raised concerns among US officials, who expressed concern that it lacked achievable military objectives and that the IDF was not yet ready to launch a ground invasion.

After Austin’s talks with his Israeli counterpart, Yoav Gallant, in which he warned him about the Islamist group Hamas’ complex network of tunnels running under densely populated areas, Israel further refined its plan, a US official said on Saturday, speaking on condition of anonymity.

However, Biden administration officials insist that the US has not told Israel what to do and that it still supports a ground invasion.

Other factors that also likely weighed on Israel, US officials said, were the possible impact on the hostage negotiations and the fact that Israeli political and military leaders were divided over how, when and whether to invade.

Phased operations

But current and former Pentagon officials, as well as former US commanders who oversaw military operations in the cities, said on Saturday that Israel appeared to be conducting a phased operation with smaller intelligence units moving into Gaza to find Hamas militants, confront them and identify their weaknesses.

“Once they’ve identified the weak points and the loopholes, they bring in the main force to attack,” said Mick Mulroy, a former senior Pentagon official.

Frederick B. Hodges, a retired three-star Army general who fought in Iraq, said the tactic is also a way for Israeli forces to “reduce or limit casualties and collateral damage” on buildings.​​

IDF operations are part of an invasion, says former Israeli foreign minister

Tzipi Livni, Israel’s former foreign minister, said the actions taken by Israeli forces were part of the invasion, but the nation had no alternative.

When asked if the current action by the Israeli forces is an invasion, Tzipi Livni stated: “Yes, it is a part… It is not an easy task. But what is the other alternative?”

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