Why is an end to the war in Gaza so elusive?

TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — The war in Gaza may be on the cusp of a new phase after Israel approved plans over the weekend to intensify its operations. Which raises the question: After 19 months of bloodshed and destruction, why is there still no end in sight?

Israel and Hamas appear to only be growing further apart. Israel unleashed fierce strikes in March, shattering a truce that had freed hostages and sent in badly needed aid. Israel’s new plans include seizing the strip, forcibly displacing hundreds of thousands of Palestinians and asserting greater control over the distribution of aid in the territory, according to Israeli officials.

Mounting Israeli public support for an end to the war has not swayed Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu from his stance that Hamas must be destroyed first. The military pressure, vast destruction in Gaza and rising death toll have so far not budged Hamas from its position demanding an end to the war and a full Israeli withdrawal from Gaza.

Here is a deeper look at why an end to the war has been so elusive.

The war began on Oct. 7, 2023, when Hamas militants attacked southern Israel, killing 1,200 and taking 251 hostages. Israel's massive retaliation has killed over 52,000 people in Gaza, according to local health authorities, whose count does not differentiate between militants and civilians.

The Hamas attack upended Israel’s longstanding security doctrine. For years, Israel weathered threats along its borders, launching periodic operations to contain them. Hamas’ surprise assault broke that cycle.

Israel says it is no longer willing to accept a reality where such an attack can reoccur. It has gone to great lengths to reshape the region according to that new doctrine.

Israeli forces have seized areas in Lebanon and Syria and cracked down in the West Bank, displacing tens of thousands. In Gaza, they intend to remain in the territory in a bid to eliminate Hamas’ ability to regroup.

Israel shows no sign of relenting, despite war crimes accusations at international courts.

Experts say Hamas no longer has the capacity to stage an Oct 7.-style attack — yet it cannot be easily stamped out, either.

The drive to dismantle Hamas' military and governing capabilities by force has so far proven incompatible with Israel's other war aim: freeing hostages. The captives' relatives fear any escalation in fighting endangers them.

Netanyahu has said he is prepared to end the war if Hamas gives up power, disarms and leaves Gaza. But even after that, Israel appears poised to keep troops in corridors carving up Gaza — effectively a new form of occupation.

Hamas has offered to release all hostages in return for a full Israeli withdrawal from Gaza and an end to the war. It says it’s willing to cede power in Gaza to other Palestinians but has refused to disarm, offering instead a long-term truce with Israel.

Netanyahu has rejected the notion of Gaza being run by the more moderate Palestinian Authority, but has offered no concrete alternative. He opposes statehood for Palestinians in Gaza or the West Bank.

Opinion polls consistently show that only a minority of Palestinians support Hamas, and there have been some protests inside Gaza against Hamas and the war. Still, many Palestinians see armed resistance as the only path to statehood because negotiations and forms of nonviolent resistance have largely failed.

Founded in the late 1980s, the Islamic militant group — which does not accept Israel’s existence — is deeply rooted in Palestinian society, with an armed wing, a political party, media and charities. Over 18 years of rule in Gaza, it built a network of underground tunnels, rocket launchers, and weapons caches — some of which remains intact despite Israel’s campaign.

Two far-right parties who prop up Netanyahu's governing coalition hold the key to his political survival. They have threatened to topple the government if the war ends with Hamas intact. One party briefly quit the coalition over a recent ceasefire deal, only to return when fighting resumed.

If both leave, it could bring down the government and trigger early elections. Public opinion polls throughout the war have consistently shown that Netanyahu would struggle to form a coalition government in new elections, endangering his nearly uninterrupted 16-year rule.

Part of that decline in support is because many Israelis oppose his government's insistence on continuing the war and want him to secure a deal freeing the remaining 59 hostages, roughly 24 of whom are believed to be alive. Many say Netanyahu should accept responsibility for his role in failing to prevent Hamas' Oct. 7 attack and resign, either now or after the war.

Public pressure is also mounting for an independent inquiry into the security failures of Oct. 7, which Netanyahu has refused to launch while the war continues. Any findings could be politically damaging to Netanyahu, who insists he’ll face scrutiny, but only after the war.

His leadership has also been dogged by a series of scandals in his office as well as fierce public criticism against his moves to fire top security and legal officials, whom many Israelis view as an important check on executive power. He is also on trial for corruption for charges he denies.

Despite Netanyahu's political woes, Israel enjoys the support of U.S. President Donald Trump, who blames Hamas for the fighting and the misery the war has caused to Palestinian civilians.

During the Biden administration, Israel faced some pushback from U.S. officials over what they saw as undue harm to civilians and the humanitarian crisis in Gaza.

While Trump says he wants an end to the war, he has so far given Israel free rein as it relaunched its military campaign in March and imposed a blockade on Gaza, barring all food, water, medicine and fuel and deepening a humanitarian crisis.

On Monday, Trump blamed Hamas for the aid crisis in Gaza, saying the group was “taking everything that’s being brought in,” echoing Israel's accusations, which aid groups have disputed.

Trump has also floated a plan to take over Gaza and relocate its population, an idea once limited to the fringes of Israeli political discourse that Netanyahu has now embraced and said Israel will try to implement.

Follow AP’s war coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/israel-hamas-war

Islam Abu Sahloul, center, mourns the death of her sister Lamia, 32, who was killed when an Israeli army strike hit a house killing at least five people, in Khan Younis, in the southern Gaza Strip, Thursday, May 1, 2025. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)

Ultra-orthodox Jewish man looks at the Gaza Strip from an observation point in Sderot, southern Israel, Monday, May 5, 2025. (AP Photo/Maya Alleruzzo)

A Palestinian girl wounded in an Israeli airstrike on a school in Bureij refugee camp is brought to Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in Deir al Balah, central Gaza Strip, on Tuesday, May 6, 2025. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)

People take part in a protest demanding the end of the war and immediate release of hostages held by Hamas in the Gaza Strip, and against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government in Tel Aviv, Israel, Saturday, May 3, 2025.(AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)

Apparently, the worst Australian cricket team in 15 years just won the Ashes with two matches to spare against the best England squad assembled since 2011.

Long-time protagonist Stuart Broad lit the fuse ahead of a volatile contest for the longest-running rivalry in test cricket when he described the host squad as the worst to contest the Ashes in Australia since England won the 2010-11 series Down Under.

The 167-test veteran played two matches for England in that winning series.

Since then, a drought has extended to 16 losses, two draws and no wins for England on Australian soil.

Marnus Labuschagne, who produced a spectacular catch to help hasten the end of England's dogged last-day comeback in the third test on Sunday, reflected on the pre-series pronouncements by Broad and others.

“Have to say, being called the worst Australian team in 15 years… like it's nice to be sitting where we are, 3-0 up,” he told the Australian Broadcasting Corp. “The job's not done yet. We want to make sure it's 5-0 and really take that urn.”

It took all of 11 days — two in Perth, four in Brisbane and almost a full five in Adelaide — not quite a record for clinching an Ashes series but not too far off.

Chasing what needed to be a world record for victory, England was all out for 352 in pursuit of 435, giving Australia an 82-run win. By going the distance, the third test drew a total crowd of 223,638.

The Barmy Army of traveling England supporters was in full voice as England took the record-chasing fourth innings into the penultimate session at the Adelaide Oval, but ultimately it was the Aussies crowing about yet another dramatic win.

It's true, Australia had a patched-up squad, with skipper Pat Cummins missing the first two tests while he continued recovery from a back injury. Josh Hazlewood was ruled out for the series. That left Mitchell Starc as the only member of the regular pace triumvirate available for the first two tests. When offspinner Nathan Lyon was dropped for the second test, Starc was the only member of Australia's longtime bowling quartet in the lineup.

He led from the front, with two man-of-the-match performances. With three of the last four wickets in Adelaide, he has 22 for the series and 51 for the calendar year.

“We just found a way, which I think is a feature of this group over a number of years now,” Starc said. “Even at times where it’s not going our way, we can find a way to get ourselves over the line.”

In the batting lineup, there were questions over who would open and who would bat at No. 3. Steve Smith led the team in the absence of Cummins in Perth and Brisbane but was ruled out of the third test because of vertigo. Usman Khawaja was rushed back into the lineup to replace him and helped hold things together in the first innings.

Cummins said the Australian players took the attitude of just playing what's in front of them.

“You just kind of crack on,” he said. “Even though I missed the first couple of games, Steve stepped right in. It was smooth, seamless.

“And there’s always things that crop up … but the boys go, ‘OK, that’s happened, let’s crack on, what’s next?’ That’s one of the big reasons why we’ve had success over the last couple of years.”

That attitude will really be tested again in Melbourne starting Boxing Day, with Cummins and Lyon unlikely to play the fourth test.

Khawaja's back injury in the first test forced Travis Head up from No. 5 to open the innings, and he responded with a match-winning century in that game. He made the opening slot his own, posting 170 on his home ground in Adelaide in the second innings.

In a post-match TV interview Head was asked what it's like to be part of the Australian team. His answer was simple: “Yeah, it’s bloody amazing.”

AP cricket: https://apnews.com/hub/cricket

Australia's Mitchell Starc, right, celebrates the wicket of England's Will Jacks, left, during play on the final day of the third Ashes cricket test between England and Australia in Adelaide, Australia, Sunday, Dec. 21, 2025. (AP Photo/James Elsby)

Australia's Travis Head kisses the pitch after scoring a century during play on day three of the third Ashes cricket test between England and Australia in Adelaide, Australia, Friday, Dec. 19, 2025. (AP Photo/James Elsby)

Australia's Nathan Lyon walks from the field during play on the final day of the third Ashes cricket test between England and Australia in Adelaide, Australia, Sunday, Dec. 21, 2025. (AP Photo/James Elsby)

Australia's Mitchell Starc, right, celebrates the wicket of England's Jofra Archer with his teammates during play on the final day of the third Ashes cricket test between England and Australia in Adelaide, Australia, Sunday, Dec. 21, 2025. (AP Photo/James Elsby)

Australia's players celebrate after winning the third Ashes Test against England in Adelaide, Australia, Sunday, Dec. 21, 2025. (AP Photo/James Elsby)

Australia's captain Pat Cummins speaks with media after Australia won the third Ashes cricket test against England in Adelaide, Australia, Sunday, Dec. 21, 2025. (AP Photo/James Elsby)

Australia's Alex Carey, right, and Australia's Marnus Labuschagne pose for a photo after Australia won the third Ashes Test against England in Adelaide, Australia, Sunday, Dec. 21, 2025. (AP Photo/James Elsby)