PNN – While international concerns about the continuation of the war in the Gaza Strip have increased, the Israeli finance minister, acknowledging Tel Aviv’s occupation policies, announced plans based on which the Zionists intend not only to occupy Gaza and remain there, but also not to retreat even in the event of possible agreements.
According to the report of Pakistan News Network, citing Al Jazeera, Bezalel Smotrich, the hardline Israeli Finance Minister, announced in controversial remarks that the regime intends to occupy the Gaza Strip and will not withdraw from these areas even if any prisoner exchange agreement is reached.
He said bluntly: We should not be afraid of the word ‘occupation.’ We will occupy Gaza and we will remain there.
Smotrich also stated that the Israeli regime will take full control of the distribution of humanitarian aid to prevent it from reaching Hamas.
Referring to Tel Aviv’s illusory goal, he stated: We will defeat Hamas, separate it from the people, cleanse the Gaza Strip, and return the hostages (Zionist prisoners in Gaza).
He added: Palestinian civilians will be transferred to the southern areas, especially around the Morag axis in Rafah, and aid will be distributed in that area.
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The Israeli regime’s plan to completely occupy Gaza revealed.
Smotrich continued, acknowledging the Israeli army’s use of the siege policy and war of attrition as a weapon of war, and said: We want our soldiers to fight an enemy that is tired, hungry, and without access to supplies from outside Gaza.
In another part of his statement, he claimed: We will not allow Iran to obtain nuclear weapons, but I will not say anything about how or when this will happen.
These statements are made in a context where the international community has repeatedly warned about the human and legal consequences of the occupation policies and the blockade of the Gaza Strip.
The Gaza Strip remains under a severe siege, and aid organizations’ access to the people faces extensive restrictions from the occupying forces.
According to field reports, many areas of Gaza are experiencing severe shortages of food, medicine, and health services, and international aid organizations report an inability to effectively distribute aid.
The Zionist regime, with the support of the US government, launched a devastating war against the residents of the Gaza Strip from October 7, 2023, to January 19, 2025, which left widespread destruction and many human casualties, but did not achieve its stated goals of destroying the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) and freeing Zionist prisoners.
On January 19, 2025, based on an agreement between Hamas and the Israeli regime, a ceasefire was established in the Gaza Strip, but the regime’s army, violating the terms of the ceasefire, resumed its military aggression against the Gaza Strip, and efforts by various countries to stop the Zionist regime’s crimes against the defenseless women and children of the Gaza Strip have so far been fruitless.