Israel signals readiness to remove Gaza population as Netanyahu says troops will stay

Israel has said it is prepared to remove Palestinians from the Gaza Strip if the United States approves a destination for them, while Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu separately visited the territory and said Israeli forces would not withdraw. The two statements, made on Wednesday, underline the continuing gap between Israeli military and political positions and the next stage of the US-backed ceasefire framework. They also come as international mediators continue to press for movement on the plan's later phases.

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Defence Minister Israel Katz said Israel was "organised and prepared" to remove Palestinians from Gaza "by every way possible", and that the government was waiting for the United States to determine where displaced Gazans could go. He told a conference hosted by Israeli media that there was "no real solution for Gaza in the end without this migration". Katz also said the plan had not been cancelled and remained under discussion, adding that approval would depend on Hamas not meeting its obligations under the ceasefire.

Netanyahu, meanwhile, visited Israeli forces in Gaza for the first time since the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas took effect in October 2025. Standing near the so-called Yellow Line, which marks areas under Hamas and Israeli military control, he said: "We control the area. We are not retreating.

We are staying on this line." He said Israel controlled 60% of the Strip and would continue operations until what he described as the threat from Hamas was removed. The remarks are significant because they touch on two of the most sensitive issues in the conflict: the future of Gaza's population and the future deployment of Israeli troops. The US-backed ceasefire framework has already faced repeated strain, with Israel continuing strikes and advancing further into the territory despite calls to move to the next stage of the plan.

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Netanyahu has also rejected a proposal to advance the process after Hamas said it had agreed to hand over its weapons. The comments also revive a long-running and highly contentious debate over displacement from Gaza. US President Donald Trump earlier in his second term called for all two million Palestinians to leave the territory and spoke of redeveloping it as a luxury resort destination, before later softening that idea after international criticism.

The proposal was condemned by Palestinians, who viewed it as a possible repeat of the mass displacement associated with the 1948 creation of Israel. The latest statements come against the backdrop of a war that began after Hamas's 7 October 2023 attack on Israel. Since then, Gaza has been devastated by Israeli bombardment, and the territory remains divided by the ceasefire line and ongoing military activity.

Israel says its operations are aimed at eliminating Hamas and preventing future attacks, while critics of the plan warn that any forced movement of civilians would deepen the humanitarian crisis and raise legal and political concerns. The situation on the ground also remains fluid. On Tuesday, Israel said its forces and a Palestinian anti-Hamas militia captured the head of Hamas's internal security apparatus during a ground operation in Gaza City, an incident Palestinian health officials said left four people dead.

Hamas's Interior Ministry identified the man as Muein al-Arabid and described him as an officer in the internal security service. That episode, together with the latest statements from Katz and Netanyahu, suggests the ceasefire remains fragile and contested. What remains unclear is whether Washington would support any plan involving the removal of Palestinians from Gaza, and whether any destination could be identified.