Israeli defense minister says troops will remain in Gaza, Lebanon and
Syria indefinitely
[April 16, 2025]
By ISAAC SCHARF and WAFAA SHURAFA
JERUSALEM (AP) — Israel’s defense minister said Wednesday that troops
will remain in so-called security zones in the Gaza Strip, Lebanon and
Syria indefinitely, remarks that could further complicate talks with
Hamas over a ceasefire and hostage release.
Israeli forces have taken over more than half of Gaza in a renewed
campaign to pressure Hamas to release hostages after Israel ended their
ceasefire last month. Israel has also refused to withdraw from some
areas in Lebanon following a ceasefire with the Hezbollah militant group
last year, and it seized a buffer zone in southern Syria after rebels
overthrew President Bashar Assad in December.
“Unlike in the past, the (Israeli military) is not evacuating areas that
have been cleared and seized,” Defense Minister Israel Katz said in a
statement. The military “will remain in the security zones as a buffer
between the enemy and (Israeli) communities in any temporary or
permanent situation in Gaza — as in Lebanon and Syria.”
The Palestinians and both neighboring countries view the presence of
Israeli troops as military occupation in violation of international law.
Hamas has said it will not release dozens of remaining hostages without
a complete Israeli withdrawal from Gaza and a lasting ceasefire.
“They promised that the hostages come first. In practice, Israel is
choosing to seize territory before the hostages," the main organization
representing families of the hostages said in a statement.
“There is one solution that is desirable and feasible, and that is the
release of all the hostages at once as part of an agreement, even at the
cost of ending the war," it said.
Israel says it must maintain control of what it refers to as security
zones to prevent a repeat of Hamas' Oct. 7, 2023 attack, in which
thousands of militants stormed into southern Israel from Gaza, killing
some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducting 251.
Israel’s offensive has killed over 51,000 Palestinians, according to
Gaza’s Health Ministry, which does not say how many were civilians or
combatants but says women and children make up more than half of the
dead. Israel says it has killed some 20,000 militants, without providing
evidence.
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Israel's bombardment and ground operations have left vast areas of
the territory uninhabitable and have displaced around 90% of the
population of roughly 2 million Palestinians. Many have been
displaced multiple times, and hundreds of thousands are crammed into
squalid tent camps with dwindling food after Israel sealed off the
territory from all imports more than a month ago.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed to annihilate
Hamas and return the 59 hostages still in Gaza — 24 of whom are
believed to be alive. He has said that Israel will then implement
U.S. President Donald Trump's proposal for the resettlement of much
of Gaza's population in other countries through what Netanyahu
refers to as “voluntary emigration.”
Palestinians and Arab countries have universally rejected Trump’s
proposal, which human rights experts say would likely violate
international law. Palestinians in Gaza say they don’t want to
leave, and fear another mass expulsion like the one that occurred
during the war surrounding Israel’s creation in 1948.
The Trump administration, which took credit for helping to broker
the ceasefire that took hold in January, has since expressed full
support for Israel's decision to end it and to cut off all
humanitarian aid. Trump's Mideast envoy, Steve Witkoff, has been
trying to broker a new ceasefire agreement more favorable to Israel
but those efforts appear to have made little progress.
Netanyahu helms the most nationalist and religious government in
Israel's history, and his coalition partners have called for the
reestablishment of Jewish settlements in Gaza.
Israel withdrew its forces from Gaza and dismantled its settlements
there in 2005, but it maintained control of most of Gaza's land
border, coastline and airspace, and joined Egypt in imposing a
blockade on the territory after Hamas seized power in 2007.
Israel seized Gaza, east Jerusalem and the West Bank — territories
the Palestinians want for a future state — in the 1967 Mideast war.
It also captured the Golan Heights from Syria in that conflict and
annexed it in a move not recognized by any country except for the
United States.
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Shurafa reported from Deir al-Balah, Gaza Strip.
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