On Oct. 9, the shape of Israel's response to the unprecedented Oct. 7 attacks by Hamas began to take shape, as Defence Minister Yoav Gallant announced that the Gaza Strip would be placed "under complete siege".

In addition, 300,000 reservists were initially called up, with another 60,000 called up on Oct. 10.

Under siege

On Oct. 7, the border fence between Gaza and Southern Israel was breached by Hamas militants, in some places by direct attacks, in other places through infiltration, such as using paragliders.

While the raids saw several military targets attacked, with equipment being destroyed or captured, in many other occurrences, militants targeted civilian targets, killing hundreds and taking many hostage.

Israel's prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu responded by declaring war on Hamas, and promised retribution.

Reservists

Israel has a relatively small population of about nine million citizens, but is also famous for its successful reliance on reservists in order to conduct military operations.

In an unprecedented move, the IDF's spokesman Daniel Hagari was quoted by Reuters as saying that 300,000 reservists had been called up since Saturday, indicating that a possible ground invasion of Gaza could occur.

Another 60,000 were called up on Oct. 10, reported the New York Times.

While a full-scale ground invasion has not happened yet, social media shows large amounts of heavy military equipment being moved into Southern Israel, including tanks, armored vehicles, and artillery pieces.

Israel's national carrier El Al has also said that it will lay on more flights to assist reservists attempting to return to the country in order to fulfil reservist call ups, according to a report by Reuters.

Social media has also shown Israel military aircraft airlifting reservists seeking to return to the country.

Just in the last 24 Hours the Israeli Air Force has Airlifted Hundreds of Active Duty IDF Soldiers and Reservists back to Israel from across Europe to assist in the “Iron Swords War.” pic.twitter.com/zm8XthNCs4

— OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) October 10, 2023

Israeli domestic politics

This is in marked contrast to the situation just a few months ago in July.

Israel has been undergoing a period of domestic political contestation, where the government of Netanyahu's proposed changes to the judicial system was met with fierce resistance and protests by the Israeli civilians.

According to the The New York Times, it even led to the unprecedented move on the part of senior reservists, who threatened to refuse call ups should the changes go through.

However, in the face of the Oct. 7 attacks, such protests appear to have been put on the backburner.

Even opposition leader and former prime minister Naftali Bennet has been seen visiting frontline units.

ראש הממשלה לשעבר בנט התייצב ביחידת המילואים של מגלן pic.twitter.com/NyTmSPZlwb

— רועי שרון Roy Sharon (@roysharon11) October 7, 2023

Speculation has also been building about why so many reservists have been called up, with Reuters reporting clashes coming in the north of Israel, at the border with Lebanon, where the militant organisation Hezbollah is based.

Hezbollah and Israel have exchanged artillery and rocket fire since the attacks by Hamas.

Complete siege

Israeli defence minister Yoav Gallant was quoted by the Guardian as ordering a "complete siege" on the Gaza strip.

"There will be no electricity, no food, no water, no fuel, everything is closed,"

This was confirmed later by Israel Katz, the country's Energy Minister, who confirmed that fuel, electricity, and water supplies to Gaza had been shut down.

United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres, while condemning Hamas' "acts of terror", said he was "deeply distressed" by the plan for a siege.

He said that the humanitarian in the Gaza Strip was already in precarious situation prior to the Oct. 7 attacks and retaliation.

"This most recent violence does not come in a vacuum. The reality is that it grows out of a longstanding conflict, with a 56-year long occupation and no political end in sight. While I recognise Israel’s legitimate security concerns, I also remind Israel that military operations must be conducted in strict accordance with international humanitarian law."

He added:

"I recognise the legitimate grievances of the Palestinian people. But nothing can justify these acts of terror and the killing, maiming and abduction of civilians."

Bombings in Gaza by Israeli military

The move to cut off essential supplies came after two days of airstrikes from Israel's air force, where video footage showed bombs demolishing whole apartment blocks.

Bloomberg reported that a spokesperson for Hamas has said that the group would retaliate against the destruction of civilian homes in Gaza without warning by killing hostages.

Israel has previously issued warnings to occupants of target buildings by sending text messages or phone calls, according to the Times of Israel, as well as using a lower powered strike against the roof of a building as a warning, a practice known as "roof knocking".

However, it appears that roof knocking will no longer be the standard policy, possibly resulting in the Hamas warning.

The death toll for the conflict has surpassed 1,600, with Al Jazeera reporting over 700 deaths in Gaza alone.

Singapore's Ministry of Foreign Affairs has warned Singaporeans in the area to leave as soon as possible, and has advised against further travel to either Israel or the Palestinian territories.

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Top image via @sentdefender/Twitter & @netanyahu/Twitter