Defense Minister Israel Katz said Saturday evening that he and Prime Minister Netanyahu have instructed the IDF to prepare for a prolonged deployment in the security buffer zone in southern Lebanon, signaling that the military is planning for an extended presence rather than a near-term withdrawal.
Defense Minister Israel Katz said Saturday evening that the IDF has been ordered to prepare for an extended deployment in the security buffer zone in southern Lebanon.
"The prime minister and I have instructed the IDF to prepare for a prolonged stay in the security zone," Katz said in a statement reported by N12. The directive follows a series of recent statements by Katz and Prime Minister Netanyahu reaffirming that Israel will not withdraw from the security zones it holds in Lebanon, Syria, and Gaza, as The Zioneer has reported over the past two weeks.
Katz previously stated that the lesson of October 7 is that the IDF must remain beyond the border, and that Netanyahu communicated to President Trump that Israel would not withdraw from the zones despite the US-Iran ceasefire agreement. The new instruction to plan for an extended stay — rather than a temporary deployment — signals an operational horizon that is indefinite in duration.
No timeline for the extended deployment was given, and the statement did not specify whether additional forces would be rotated into the zone.
- StrongNetanyahu, defense chiefs reaffirm IDF will maintain security zone in southern Lebanon
- StrongKatz: IDF will stay in Lebanon, Syria, Gaza security zones indefinitely, rejects withdrawal pressure
- DevelopingNetanyahu: Lebanese civilians will not be allowed back into IDF-held security zone
- DevelopingDefense Minister Katz: 'The lesson of October 7 — IDF must remain beyond the border, not withdraw from security zone'
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