In a statement posted on X, Yair Golan, major general of Israel’s army reserve said the decision to expand military operation in Gaza was made — “not to maintain Israel’s security, but to save Netanyahu and the extremist government,” Al Jazeera reports.

“The actual occupation of the Strip in the name of ‘government survival’ will cost us blood — in the lives of the captives, in the lives of male and female soldiers, in exhaustion, and most importantly: in losing our way,” he said.

Golan, who also serves as leader of the opposition Democrats party, said the Israeli military’s only role is to “protect the citizens of Israel, not serve political goals”.