Israel tightens Gaza strike policy due to Board of Peace pressure: Targeted killings only with IDF chief approval

The Israel Defense Forces significantly tightened the rules of engagement in the Gaza Strip this week, following pressure on Israel from the U.S.-backed Gaza Board of Peace and Arab states to reduce its strikes and give diplomacy with the Hamas terror group another chance.

The reported decrease in targeted killings of terrorists is intended to convince Hamas to comply with the disarmament agreement reached last week, and comes despite Israeli officials denying that the recent relative lull in strikes resulted from external pressure.

According to reports by several Israeli news outlets, the IDF Southern Command was ordered to request approval for targeted eliminations from Chief of Staff Lt.-Gen. Eyal Zamir personally.

Until now, such strikes had been approved by the Southern Command chief or even division commanders, according to Army Radio, which noted that the scope of Israeli strikes had already begun to decline, except for one on Monday evening.

Walla News added that strikes in circumstances involving an immediate threat or other exceptional cases would still be permitted.

A Palestinian Islamic Jihad terrorist who invaded Israel during the October 7, 2023, onslaught and held Rom Braslavski in captivity was killed in an airstrike over the weekend, the IDF announces.

The strike in central Gaza's Deir al-Balah killed Mahmoud Fatair, a member of… pic.twitter.com/BJHedfHWJc

— Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian (@manniefabian) August 3, 2026

In addition, the order doesn’t include personal rules of engagement for troops on the ground, who are allowed to open or return fire if they are in danger.

The reported order to limit the strikes comes after several weeks of a steady rise in targeted killings. According to Walla, the strategy had been to exploit Hamas' reluctance to respond for fear of triggering another Israeli ground offensive, while steadily increasing pressure on Hamas commanders and its security apparatus responsible for hunting suspected Israeli collaborators.

The disarmament agreement with Hamas included a stipulation on both sides to cease all military operations. Board of Peace (BoP) High Representative Nickolay Mladenov on Sunday strongly criticized Israel continuing its strikes.

Following Israel's criticism of the agreement, on Monday the BoP confirmed that “contrary to inaccurate reports,” the IDF’s withdrawal “will take place only once decommissioning is complete.”  

After the latest Israeli strike on Monday, the mediating countries Turkey, Egypt and Qatar again expressed “strong condemnation and denunciation of the ongoing Israeli violations in the Gaza Strip.”

They alleged that the strikes “particularly” targeted “healthcare facilities and medical infrastructure.”

“The continuation of these violations constitutes a breach of the agreement and undermines the efforts aimed at implementing its second phase, particularly following Hamas and the Palestinian factions’ announcement of their acceptance of the roadmap, especially the provision concerning the confinement of weapons,” they warned.

Meanwhile, Hamas appeared to highlight the continued Israeli strikes by holding a mass funeral on Tuesday for 112 people it claimed were recovered from the rubble of a building hit at the start of the war.

Hamas-affiliated media described the funeral as the largest of the war so far, claiming the victims included 40 children, 38 women and seven men with disabilities.