Defense Minister Yisrael Katz told participated Thursday morning at the conference of heads of regional councils at the regional government center headed by head of the Merhavim Regional Council Shai Hajj that Israel is prepared to defend its borders, its territory and its citizens in the north, the south and in Judea and Samaria.
Israel’s Northern Front
Katz said southern Syria must remain demilitarized at all costs — and that Israel will ensure that it does.
“I asked the commander of 8200 and the commander of the Southern Command and the other commanders – ‘What is your main conclusion following October 7?’ They said that it is not permissible to allow extremist organizations of this type to be close to the border of the State of Israel – whether in Gaza, in the north, in Syria, or near the settlements of Judea and Samaria, and anywhere – and that is our policy,” Katz told the northern regional council heads.
“In the buffer zone in Lebanon, we will remain indefinitely; our presence there depends on the situation, not a defined time period,” he said, adding that Israel has received a “green light” from the United States to do what it must to protect its borders and its citizens.
“In Syria, we made a decision in real time to prevent Iran from saving the Syrian regime and bringing in the militias. We conveyed messages through everyone we needed that if they come they will be struck. We sent the Air Force planes and they turned back the Iranian planes,” Katz said.
“Julani came to power in Syria, traded in his trousers for suits, and he speaks well. We don’t trust him. We trust only the IDF,” the minister stated.
“It was clear to me and the Prime Minister that the buffer zone had to be captured, and it is our policy is to remain there, at the peak of Mount Hermon and at the controlled points, indefinitely.”
“Southern Syria must be a demilitarized zone. We conveyed that message and the IDF was prepared.
“The day before yesterday was the first attempt by the new regime to man positions and outposts, and the [Israeli] Air Force attacked and hit. We will not allow the demilitarization of the southern Syrian region to be violated and we will not allow a threat to arise.”
Katz added that Israel will continue its support for the Syrian Druze, whose families have direct ties to the Druze families in northern Israel.
“We have a great commitment to our Druze friends in Syria, we certainly strive to maintain contact with them,” he said.
“We are currently considering allowing those nearby to come and work in the Golan Heights on a daily basis and are preparing to provide them with assistance through organizations and in all kinds of ways. We want to see them protected and we are working to do so in an informed manner.”
On the Southern Front
“We did not make a ceasefire in Gaza because there was a lack of ammunition or because the soldiers were worn out. We made a ceasefire for only one reason – because we want to return the hostages alive, and those who are not alive. This is our ultimate goal, this is our command, this is our mutual guarantee and this is how we will continue to act,” Katz stressed, adding the IDF is safeguarding Israel’s strategic interests even during the current ceasefire.
“The IDF maintains a defined buffer zone in Gaza, including outposts inside the area beyond what is being prepared on our side, including the Philadelphia axis,” he explained.
“I can tell you as Minister of Defense that I visited there and saw penetration tunnels, some blocked and some penetrating, entering from Gaza to the Egyptian side. What does that mean? Smuggling.
“T most significant instruction we gave is not to allow smuggling through humanitarian aid and to bring in ammunition and weapons. As soon as there are penetration tunnels, if you don’t hold this axis, then in those 42 days everything would be filled with weapons,” he warned.
Returning the Hostages
“Phase 1 is over. We have returned 25 kidnapped men and women alive, including the soldiers. It wasn’t like that at the various stages of the negotiations, where there was talk of 10 or 12. We also returned eight who are not alive. We want to return them all, and the best way to continue is for Hamas to know that the IDF is ready to return to war: and that is the truth.
“We are prepared in defense because even during the ceasefire we received information that they were plotting to attack soldiers and attack settlements; that is Hamas.”
Katz said Israel wants to continue the ceasefire process in order to ensure the return of all of the hostages, living and deceased. That doesn’t mean Israel won’t insist on achieving all the goals of the war, however.
“Hamas will not remain in control of Gaza, neither civilian nor military; it will not be because it cannot be,” Katz emphasized.
“I hope the Trump plan will come to fruition,” he said, noting that he has already accelerated the process for establishing a voluntary immigration administration and allowing those who want to leave Gaza voluntarily, to leave through the Ashdod port and through the Ramon airport.
In Judea and Samaria
The settlements in Judea and Samaria are the protective wall for the majority of the population in the State of Israel, Katz noted. “We must make sure that we also protect the shield.
“To me, Judea and Samaria and the settlements on the seam line are the same thing; we discovered that Hamas planned to attack before October 7th both in the settlements of Samaria and on the seam line — I am talking to you about files that were seized in this regard,” he said. “We treat this as a serious threat and that is why I changed the policy.”
The minister added that the main terrorism infrastructure in Judea and Samaria is based in the so-called “refugee camps” — towns, in fact, with all the services and infrastructure found in any other municipality — which have been used as a cudgel against the State of Israel by its enemies for decades.
Now, however, there is an even greater threat, Katz warned.
“For more than two years, Iran has been pushing weapons, funding, and guidance into the camps to build battalions, build a force, and an eastern front against the settlement and the seam line settlements against the State of Israel,” he said.
Katz has instructed the IDF to continue counterterror operations in Jenin, Tulkarem, Nur a-Shams and beyond, to “expose the roads and take care of the houses that are under threat.” The minister noted that at present, “the Jenin refugee camp is empty of residents and the IDF is inside the camp, and I have told them they will not leave the camp for at least a year.
“The soldiers and commanders say that they are finally being allowed to do what is necessary, and that they are staying there means that they do not have to come and go every time,” Katz added.
