Hundreds of former military and intelligence positions in Israel ask Trump to help end the war in Gaza

A woman dressed in a brown robe is sitting next to a child dressed in a navy blue shirt and dark pants, with her left hand next to her face and head, crying at a funeral. — Photo foot, The open letter urges Donald Trump to help end suffering.

- Author, Paulin Kola
- Author's title, BBC News
3 hours

A group of about 600 Israeli security officials retired, including former heads of intelligence agencies, have written to the president of the United States, Donald Trump, with the aim of pressing Israel's government to put the war in Gaza immediately ended.

“In our opinion, Hamas no longer represents a strategic threat to Israel,” the officials said.

“Their credibility to the vast majority of Israelis increases their ability to direct the Prime Minister (Benjamin) Netyahu and his government in the right direction: end the war, return to the hostages, stop suffering,” they wrote.

The call is produced in the midst of information according to which Netanyahu is pressing to expand military operations in Gaza in the face of stagnation of indirect conversations of high fire with Hamas.

Israel launched a devastating offensive in Gaza after Hamas's attack in the south of its territory on October 7, 2023, in which some 1,200 people died and 251 were taken as hostages.

More than 60,000 people have died as a result of the Israeli military campaign in Gaza since then, according to the Ministry of Health led by Hamas.

On Monday, the Ministry reported that at least 94 people had died in Gaza on the last day, including dozens in Israeli attacks.

He added that at least 24 people had died while looking for help. This type of reports have been made almost daily in recent months, but they are difficult to verify, since Israel prevents international journalists, including BBC, to enter Gaza independently.

The territory is also suffering from mass deprivations as a result of the strong restrictions imposed by Israel to which it is allowed to enter Gaza. According to the Gazatí government, 180 people, including 93 boys and girls, have died of malnutrition since the beginning of the war.

The agencies backed by the UN have affirmed that in Gaza the “worst possible famine scenario” is taking place.

Families of Israeli hostages holding their photos in a demonstration to demand their release. — Photo foot, The families of Israeli hostages have systematically demanded the government that gives priority to their liberation

“Netanyahu is leading Israel to forgiveness”

The letter of the former high Israeli charges is known after Hamas and militants of the Islamic jihad spread videos of two demacred Israeli hostages.

The videos were widely condemned by Israeli and Western leaders.

After the publication of the videos, Netanyahu spoke with the two families of the hostages and told them that the efforts to return them “will continue constantly and implacably.”

But an Israeli official – cited by local media – said Netyahu was working to free hostages through “Hamas's military defeat.”

The possibility of a new climbing in Gaza can further angry with Israel's allies, who have been pressing to achieve immediate fire, while reports on Palestinians who die of hunger or malnutrition cause shock throughout the world.

The main group of support for the families of the hostages condemned the idea of a new military offensive saying: “Netanyahu is taking Israel and the hostages to the perdition.”

In the letter to Trump, the former head of the Mossad, Tamir Pardo; the former head of the Shin Bet – the Agency for Internal Secret Services of Israel -Ami Ayalon; Former Prime Minister Ehud Barak and former Defense Minister Moshe Yaalon, among others, clearly express that opinion.

“At first this war was a fair war, a defensive war, but when we achieved all military objectives, this war ceased to be a fair war,” said Ayalon.

The former high controls lead the Commanders Group for the Security of Israel (CIS), which in the past has urged the government to focus on guaranteeing the return of hostages.

“They stop the Gaza War! On behalf of the CIS, the largest group of Israel of former generals of the IDF and Mossad equivalents, the Shin Bet, the police and the diplomatic body, we urge him to end the Gaza War. He did it in Lebanon. It is time to do it also in Gaza,” they wrote to the US president.

Israel faces increasing international isolation, as generalized destruction in Gaza and the suffering of the Palestinians unleash indignation.

Surveys carried out worldwide suggest that public opinion is increasingly negative with respect to Israel, which presses Western leaders to act.

But it is not clear what type of pressure, if you exercise any, you will choose to apply Trump on the Israeli prime minister.

The US president has systematically backed his ally, although last week he publicly recognized that in Gaza there was “true famine” after Netanyahu insisted that there was no such thing.

*This article was written and edited by our journalists with the help of an artificial intelligence tool for translation, as part of a pilot program.