Israeli Minister and MK Call for Permanent Occupation of Gaza Despite Tel Aviv's Approval of Trump Plan

An Israeli minister and a member of Knesset called for the permanent occupation of the Gaza Strip, despite Tel Aviv's approval of US President Donald Trump's plan, which stipulates preventing Israel from occupying or annexing the Strip.

Justice Minister Yariv Levin of the Likud party said during a conference in the Knesset on Monday, "We need to be in Gaza, and throughout the land of Israel, first and foremost, because this is our country," according to reports from far-right sources.

Simcha Rothman, a Knesset member from the far-right Religious Zionist party, also stressed that control over Gaza must remain in Israel's hands.

According to Israeli sources, the conference, titled "Gaza - The Day After," discussed topics such as encouraging the forced migration of Palestinians from the Gaza Strip, Israeli security control, and disarmament of the Strip.

Despite Tel Aviv's announcement of its approval of Trump's ceasefire plan in Gaza, Israeli officials continue to call for its occupation, the displacement of Palestinians from it, and the establishment of settlements on its land.

Last December, Israeli Defense Minister Yisrael Katz made striking statements regarding the future of the Strip, revealing during a conference in the "Beit El" settlement a plan to establish "Nahal cores" (agricultural military bases) in northern Gaza, asserting that Israel "will never withdraw and will not leave Gaza."

Katz considered these bases an alternative to the settlements evacuated in 2005, which drew dissatisfaction from the US administration, which demanded clarifications.

The Israeli army continues its operations of demolishing homes and expanding its control areas in the Gaza Strip within what is known as the Yellow Line, including leveling thousands of dunams and buildings in residential neighborhoods in the Gaza Strip. Israel also continues to violate the ceasefire agreement daily, which has led to the martyrdom of 442 Palestinians and the injury of 1236.

An analysis of satellite images from sources between October 8, 2025, two days before the start of the Gaza ceasefire, and January 10 of the current year, revealed that the occupation army carried out operations to remove rubble from destroyed homes in the city of Beit Hanoun in the northern Strip, a step that raises fundamental questions about the underlying objectives of these operations, and whether they are limited to security reasons or fall within broader intentions and plans.