The IDF will permanently seize parts of the Gaza Strip if Hamas doesn’t release the hostages held in captivity, Defense Minister Israel Katz said in a substantial yet vague escalatory threat on Friday.
“I have instructed the IDF to seize additional areas in Gaza, evacuate the population, and expand security zones around Gaza to protect Israeli communities and IDF soldiers. The more Hamas persists in its refusal to release the hostages, the more territory it will lose, which will be annexed to Israel,” Katz said.
“If the hostages are not released, Israel will continue to take more and more territory in the Strip for permanent control,” he said.
If played out to their maximal conclusion, Katz’s threats could be a game-changer that would shake the region with Israel permanently occupying portions of Gaza, something it had insisted it was not interested in until this point in the war.
However, Katz’s declarations were vague.
He did not specify which portions of Gaza would be annexed, how long Hamas had until such decisions would be made, if there were scenarios where small annexations could be reversed once hostages would be returned, or whether Israel had support for such a move from the Trump administration or other world powers.
In turn, when questioned for more specifics about these issues by The Jerusalem Post, his office uncharacteristically did not respond.
Moreover, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu did not make any similar statement, which one might have expected for such a major policy reversal.
Alternatively, the entire move was being used merely for psychological warfare against Hamas or as later justification for Israel to permanently occupy the small 700-1,100 meter security perimeter zone around Gaza that it has held onto even during the recent ceasefire.
Katz approves further Gaza military operations
On Thursday, Katz approved the continuation of military operations in Gaza. He highlighted the importance of continuing the military pressure on Gaza until the hostages are released.
The IDF announced on Thursday evening that it had four separate forces operating simultaneously in each of Gaza’s main regions.
The first ground invasion move came on Wednesday when tanks and infantry entered central Gaza at the Netzarim Corridor, again cutting off the enclave’s north and south from each other.