Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Friday stressed that the goal of the plan approved by the Cabinet overnight is to rid Hamas of Gaza and not for Israel to “occupy” the Gaza Strip.
“We are not going to occupy Gaza - we are going to free Gaza from Hamas,” Netanyahu wrote in an English-language post on his X account.
“Gaza will be demilitarized, and a peaceful civilian administration will be established, one that is not the Palestinian Authority, not Hamas, and not any other terrorist organization,” he added.
“This will help free our hostages and ensure Gaza does not pose a threat to Israel in the future,” Netanyahu stressed.
The plan which the Cabinet approved early Friday morning included five principles for ending the war, including disarming Hamas, the return of all hostages, demilitarization of the Gaza Strip, Israeli security control over the Gaza Strip and the establishment of an alternative civilian administration, which is neither Hamas nor the Palestinian Authority.
The plan has been met with criticism by France, the UN and Germany, where Chancellor Friedrich Merz announced an arms embargo on Israel following the Cabinet’s decision.
(Israel National News' North American desk is keeping you updated until the start of Shabbat in New York. The time posted automatically on all Israel National News articles, however, is Israeli time.)