Israel’s military chief warned against a full takeover of Gaza, according to three Israeli sources familiar with the discussions, as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu considers ordering the “conquest’ of the besieged territory.

After 22 months of full-scale war, killing more than 60,000 Palestinians and forcing Gaza to the brink of famine, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is reportedly preparing to defy international, domestic and military opinion by escalating the war on Gaza still further and ordering its full occupation.

Freed hostages have recounted the terror of languishing in a Hamas tunnel while the blasts from Israeli air strikes move ever closer.