Israeli forces will remain in Gaza, Lebanon and Syria indefinitely: Minister-Country
Israel's defense minister said on Wednesday that forces will remain in so-called security zones in the Gaza Strip, Lebanon and Syria indefinitely, which could further complicate Hamas' ceasefire and the release of hostages.
Israeli forces took over more than half of Gaza in a new campaign to pressure Hamas to release hostages after the ceasefire ended last month. Israel also refused to withdraw from certain parts of Lebanon after a ceasefire with Hezbollah last year and occupied a buffer zone in southern Syria after rebels overthrew President Bashar Assad in December.
“Unlike in the past, (the Israeli military) has not evacuated the cleaned and occupied areas,” Defense Minister Israel Katz said in a statement. The military “will be a buffer between enemies and (Israel) communities in any temporary or permanent situation in Gaza, such as Lebanon and Syria.”
Both the Palestinians and both neighboring countries believe that the existence of Israeli forces is a military occupation that violates international law. Hamas said dozens of hostages would not be released without a complete evacuation from Gaza and a lasting ceasefire.
The main organization representing the hostage family said in a statement: “They promise that the hostages are hostages first.
It said: “There is a solution that is desirable and feasible, and it is the release of all hostages, even at the cost of ending the war, as part of the hostages.”
Israel said it must maintain control over the security zone it mentioned to prevent Hamas from repeating the October 7, 2023 attacks, in which thousands of militants attacked southern Israel from Gaza, killing about 1,200 people, mostly civilians and kidnapped 251 people.
According to the Gaza Ministry of Health, the Israeli attack killed more than 51,000 Palestinians, which does not say how many civilians or combatants are, but says women and children account for more than half of the dead. Israel said it killed about 20,000 militants and provided no evidence.
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Israeli bombing and ground operations have made vast areas of the territory uninhabitable and displaced 90% of the Palestinian population about 2 million. Many were displaced many times, thousands were squeezed into dirty tent camps, and Israel reduced food after blocked all imports of territory more than a month ago.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed to annihilate Hamas and returned 59 hostages still in Gaza, 24 of whom were believed to be alive. He said Israel will implement U.S. President Donald Trump’s proposal to resettle Gaza’s population in other countries through what Netanyahu calls “voluntary immigration.”
Palestinians and Arab countries generally reject Trump's proposal, which human rights experts say could violate international law. Palestinians in Gaza say they don't want to leave and are afraid of the massive expulsion surrounding Israel's war created in 1948.
The Trump administration gained credibility for helping promote a ceasefire in January, after which it said full support for Israel’s decision to terminate it and cut off all humanitarian aid. Trump's Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff has been trying to promote a new ceasefire that is more favorable to Israel, but these efforts do not seem to have made any progress.
Netanyahu, who runs the most nationalist and religious government in Israel's history, calls for the reconstruction of Jewish settlements in Gaza.
Israel withdrew its troops from Gaza and demolished its settlement in 2005, but it maintained control over most of Gaza's land borders, coastlines and airspace and joined Egypt to impose a blockade on the territory after Hamas seized power in 2007.
Israel occupied Gaza, East Jerusalem and the West Bank in the 1967 Middle East War – the Palestinians hope for the future. It also captured Syria's Golan Heights in the conflict and annexed it with unsanctioned actions by any country other than the United States.
Shurafa reports from Deir Al-Balah in the Gaza Strip.
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