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Netanyahu with Israeli soldier

Photo: Kobi Gideon / ZUMA Wire / IMAGO

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has presented his plan for managing the Gaza Strip after the war to the security cabinet, according to media reports.

According to the newspapers “The Times of Israel” and “Haaretz”, this provides for the following points:

  • The repatriation of all Israeli hostages – dead or alive.

  • Israel's full security control of the entire coastal area by the Israeli military - this includes the destruction of Hamas' military structure and the establishment of a buffer zone.

  • The closure of the Palestinian relief organization UNRWA.

  • It is vaguely stated that the administration of the Gaza Strip should be led by “local officials” with professional experience.

    These will be people who have no connections to “countries or organizations that support terrorism.”

  • The Palestinian Authority (PA), which governs the West Bank, is not explicitly named in the plan.

    However, this does not exclude their participation in the future administration of the Gaza Strip.

    • The plan is largely based on familiar principles that Netanyahu has repeatedly expressed since the start of the war.

    According to Israeli media reports, this is the first time that they have been formally presented to the cabinet.

    The USA is relying on a revamped PA led by Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and wants it to take control again in the Gaza Strip.

    Israel rejects this and accuses the autonomous authority of supporting terror.

    But Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu has also so far rejected calls from some right-wing extremist ministers in his government for the repopulation of the Gaza Strip.

    The USA, as Israel's most important ally, is committed to a two-state solution that envisages the peaceful coexistence of Israel and a future Palestinian state.

    Israel claims comprehensive military control over all Palestinian territories even in the event of an agreement with the Palestinians.

    Netanyahu recently made it clear that this includes the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.

    dop/dpa