Israel’s Defence Minister Israel Katz stated on Tuesday (Dec 17) that his nation’s forces can be free to behave within the Gaza Strip even after its warfare with Hamas ends.
“After eliminating Hamas’s army and governmental capabilities in Gaza, Israel would have safety management over Gaza with full freedom of motion” for the Israeli army, Katz stated in a publish on X, noting that it was his personal “place”.
Katz stated that Israel’s future management over Gaza ought to be “precisely like in Judea and Samaria”, the biblical names for the West Financial institution which Israel has occupied since 1967 and the place its forces conduct frequent raids.
The query of Gaza’s post-war governance has remained unresolved, greater than a yr since Israel vowed to crush Hamas in retaliation for its Oct 7, 2023 assault.
Katz’s predecessor Yoav Gallant had voiced agency opposition to any extended Israeli management of Gaza, from which Israel withdrew troops and settlers in 2005 after a long time of direct rule.
In Might, then as defence minister, Gallant stated that he would “not conform to the institution of an Israeli army administration in Gaza”.
“Israel should not have civilian management over the Gaza Strip,” Gallant stated on the time, urging Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to plot a post-war plan for the territory.
Netanyahu sacked Gallant in November, citing disagreements over warfare insurance policies.
The Israeli chief changed Gallant with Katz, a former international minister who Israeli analysts say is extra more likely to endorse the Netanyahu’s views.
Hamas seized full management of Gaza in 2007, capping months of clashes with different Palestinian factions after it gained legislative elections the yr earlier than.
The Hamas assault that sparked the warfare resulted within the deaths of 1,208 folks, largely civilians, in response to an AFP tally based mostly on official Israeli figures and consists of hostages killed in captivity.
Israel’s retaliatory marketing campaign has killed at the very least 45,028 folks in Gaza, most of them civilians, in response to the figures from the Hamas-run territory’s well being ministry which the United Nations considers dependable.
