DaysofPal- Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and War Minister Israel Katz have declared that Israeli forces will maintain an open-ended military presence in southern Lebanon, Syria, and the Gaza Strip, signaling that Israel has no plans to withdraw from territories it currently controls.
The remarks were made on Thursday during a graduation ceremony for combat officers in southern Israel.
“We dominate southern Lebanon, from the summit of the Beaufort, and we will remain as long as required in the security zone,” Netanyahu said. “We do not intend to withdraw from it.”
Katz echoed the prime minister’s position, stating that “the Israeli military will remain in the security zones in Lebanon, in Syria, and in Gaza without any time limit.”
He added that Israel opposed withdrawing from southern Lebanon “despite all the pressures that exist and those that are yet to come.”
Katz also issued a warning to Iran, saying, “If Iran attacks Israel because of our activities in Lebanon, or for any other reason, we will strike it with full force in a way that will clearly demonstrate the gap in power between us.”
The statements follow a report by Middle East Eye earlier this month revealing that Israel has established a chain of military bases across southern Lebanon and Syria, a move that appeared to indicate an intention to maintain a long-term presence in territories seized since 2024.
Meanwhile, Israeli military operations continued across southern Lebanon on Friday. Lebanon’s National News Agency reported that Israeli troops bulldozed and burned homes in the town of Markaba. The agency also said Israeli air strikes killed two people in Mayfadoun and wounded another, citing the Lebanese Health Ministry. A separate strike was reported in Nabatieh al-Fawqa.
The Israeli military said four of its soldiers, including two officers, were injured during a close-quarters clash with a Hezbollah fighter in Beit Yahun. According to the military, the fighter threw a grenade before being killed in an exchange of fire.
According to the report, Israeli forces have killed at least 4,230 people in Lebanon since hostilities resumed in early March, shortly after the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran began. Daily Israeli attacks have continued despite a ceasefire agreed a week ago.
In Syria, Israel continues to occupy the strategic heights of Mount Hermon, overlooking Israel, Lebanon, and Syria. Israeli forces seized the territory, previously part of a UN-monitored buffer zone, following the collapse of Bashar al-Assad’s government in December 2024. Since then, Israel has maintained its presence in the area and, according to Syrian authorities, has carried out more than 1,000 air strikes and 400 ground incursions.
Separately, Haaretz reported that senior Israeli security officials met on Tuesday to discuss the possibility of expelling Palestinians from the Gaza Strip under what was described as a plan to encourage “voluntary emigration.”
The newspaper reported that Shmuel Ben Ezra, head of Israel’s National Security Council, convened the meeting with representatives from the Israeli military, Shin Bet, and Mossad. During the discussions, Mossad officials reportedly said the intelligence agency had not identified any country willing to accept Palestinians from Gaza.
Last month, Netanyahu ordered the Israeli military to expand its control to 70 percent of the Gaza Strip, despite a ceasefire agreed in October last year. At the time the ceasefire took effect, Israeli forces controlled approximately 53 percent of Gaza. That figure has since risen to around 60 percent, and expanding to 70 percent would confine Gaza’s estimated 2.2 million residents to just 109 square kilometers.
More than 73,000 Palestinians have been killed and over 173,000 wounded since the genocide began in October 2023. Since the ceasefire came into effect in October last year, the Israeli genocidal campaign has killed at least 1,024 Palestinians and injured another 3,260.
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