"There will be no reality in which IDF (military) officers speak out against the important plan of US President Trump regarding Gaza, and against the directives of the political echelon," Katz said in a statement.
Katz ordered the army to reprimand Major General Shlomi Binder, the head of military intelligence, "for remarks attributed to him regarding President Trump's plan for Gaza".
Earlier, Israeli media reported that during an evaluation of Trump's plan, Binder cautioned that the initiative to move Gazans to other countries and rebuild the war-torn Palestinian territory posed significant security concerns.
According to the Times of Israel, Binder warned it would inflame tensions in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, especially ahead of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan which is due to begin in about three weeks.
In a later statement, Binder said he "did not express opposition to Trump's plan", adding that "the IDF, and therefore I as well, are subordinate to the political echelon and will follow its instructions".
"In my role, I presented the possible consequences of the conversation on the matter, the enemy's perspective in terms of security, and recommendations for offensive actions accordingly," he added.
On Thursday, Trump doubled down on the plan, saying the "Gaza Strip would be turned over to the United States by Israel at the conclusion of fighting".
"No soldiers by the US would be needed! Stability for the region would reign!!!" he wrote in an early morning social media post.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu voiced support for Trump's plan, calling it "the first original idea to be raised in years".
Katz on Thursday said he had "instructed the IDF to prepare for voluntary relocation of Gaza residents who wish to leave the territory.
Hamas has rejected Trump's plans as "absolutely unacceptable".
"Trump's remarks about Washington taking control of Gaza amount to an open declaration of intent to occupy the territory," spokesman Hazem Qassem said.
Israel military says strikes Hamas weapons facility in Syria
Jerusalem (AFP) Feb 8, 2025 -
The Israeli military said it carried out an air strike on Saturday targeting a weapons depot used by Palestinian militant group Hamas in southern Syria.
Israeli "fighter jets conducted an intelligence-based strike on a weapons storage facility belonging to the Hamas terrorist organisation in the area of Deir Ali in southern Syria", the military said in a statement.
The army said it would "continue to dismantle Hamas' capabilities on all of its fronts and will operate against all attempts by terrorist organisations to entrench themselves and build up their forces."
Israel has carried out hundreds of strikes in Syria since its civil war broke out in 2011, mainly on Iranian-linked targets.
After a lightning rebel offensive toppled longtime Syrian strongman Bashar al-Assad in December, Israel carried out hundreds more air strikes on Syrian military assets in what it said was a bid to prevent them from falling into hostile hands.
Israeli troops also entered the UN-patrolled buffer zone separating Israeli and Syrian forces in the Golan Heights.
Syria under Assad was a key component of Iran's "Axis of Resistance", a loose alliance of forces united in their opposition to Israel, which included Lebanon's Hezbollah as well as Hamas.
In October 2022, Hamas restored relations with the Syrian government after about a decade of estrangement.
The Palestinian Islamist group was long one of Syria's closest allies, in large part due to a shared enmity towards Israel.
But it left Syria in 2012 after condemning the Assad government's brutal suppression of protests in March 2011, which triggered the country's descent into civil war.
Related Links
Space War News
| Subscribe Free To Our Daily Newsletters |
| Subscribe Free To Our Daily Newsletters |
