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According to *The Wall Street Journal*, Israeli Chief of Staff **Herzi Halevi** has called for pursuing a **prisoner exchange deal with Hamas**, admitting that efforts to significantly weaken the group have failed to yield clear results despite nearly two years of military operations in Gaza.
During a recent visit to army units deployed in Gaza, Halevi reportedly told soldiers:
**"We are very close to a decision-making crossroads."**
Polls in Israel show a majority of the public supports ending the war in exchange for the release of approximately **50 hostages**, with around **20 believed to still be alive**.
Members of Prime Minister **Benjamin Netanyahu’s** coalition have expressed concern that Israel’s military strategy is not achieving its goals.
**Likud MP Amit Halevi**, a member of the Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee, stated:
**"What we need is an effective siege, not repetitive incursions that bring us no closer to victory."**
Halevi, citing intelligence reports, added that **Hamas and other armed groups in Gaza still retain around 35,000 fighters**—roughly the same number they had when the war began 21 months ago.
A statement by Hamas spokesperson **Abu Ubaida** described a recent attack on Monday night as a **complex operation** carried out in an area that Israel had assumed was secure.
The attack killed several elite Israeli soldiers who had just returned to Gaza.
Families of the fallen soldiers claim that exhaustion after **21 months of ongoing conflict** contributed to the mistakes that led to their deaths.
In another incident in late June—coinciding with the day Israel and Iran agreed to a **12-day ceasefire**—**seven Israeli soldiers were killed** when a Hamas fighter threw a grenade into their armored vehicle, an act documented on video.
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