CNN
—
Israel’s Minister of Finance, of the extreme right, Bezalel Smotrich, declared on Monday that Gaza’s annexation is not ruled out and that, once the Israel Defense Forces (FDI) begin to expand their operations in the enclave, they will not even retire even if Hamas accepts a new agreement to release hostages.
“Once the maneuver begins, there will be no withdrawal from the territories that we have captured, not even in exchange for hostages,” he said at a conference in Jerusalem, referring to a decision of the security cabinet taken on Sunday. “We are conquering Gaza to stay; it’s over to enter and leave. This is a war for victory.”
Smotrich added that Israel could consider Gaza’s annexation, but that he has not yet insisted on it. “Once we conquer and stay, we can talk about sovereignty. But I did not demand that it be included in the objectives of the war.”
“It’s time to stop fearing to the word ‘occupation’. It was the most natural word at the beginning of the State: a people who seek life conquer their land,” he said.
Smotrich is mainly responsible for the country’s finances, but is part of the security cabinet and has a significant influence on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who depends on his support to avoid the collapse of the government.
Meanwhile, a senior Israeli security official said that Israel’s expanded operation in Gaza, “Gideon cars”, was unanimously approved by the security cabinet on Sunday with the aim of subjecting Hamas and ensuring the release of all hostages.
The official indicated that the plan would be implemented after the visit of US President Donald Trump to the Middle East next week to “provide a window of opportunity” and reach an agreement on hostages under the “Witkoff model.”
The high fire frame proposed by Trump’s envoy, Steve Witkoff, provided for a temporary cessation of fighting in exchange for the release of some hostages of Gaza and some prisoners of Israeli prisons. However, it did not guarantee the end of war or the complete withdrawal of the Israeli forces.
“If an agreement on the hostages is not reached, the operation cars of Gideon will begin with all its strength and will not stop until all its objectives are achieved,” said the official.
The plan then consists of transferring the entire population of Gaza to the south of the enclave, after which the blockade of humanitarian aid could be completely lifted, according to the official, who added that the IDF “will remain in all the areas that capture.”
“In any temporary or permanent agreement, Israel will not evacuate the security zone around Gaza, whose objective is to protect Israeli communities and prevent smuggling from weapons to Hamas,” said the official.
