PM vows no Qatari, Turkish troops in Gaza after countries given role in governing body |
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu pledged Monday that Turkish and Qatari forces would not set foot in Gaza, days after the White House announced that officials from the countries would sit on a key committee set to oversee the Strip’s postwar management.
He also acknowledged that Israel and the US had a “certain argument” about the issue.
In a speech on Monday in the Knesset, the premier also claimed that Turkey and Qatar, both countries that are hostile to Israel, will not “have any authority or any influence” in the various bodies set up by US President Donald Trump’s administration to run postwar Gaza. Referring to the Gaza Executive Board, Netanyahu asserted that Qatar and Turkey “are barely members of an advisory committee of one of the three commissions, in which they don’t have any authority or any influence or any soldiers. It’s one body, but there are all sorts of bodies.” In fact, the Executive Board will be overseeing the postwar management of Gaza.
Prior to the US announcement, Netanyahu’s office repeatedly insisted that Israel would not allow Turkey or Qatar to gain any foothold in Gaza after the war. However, following the US announcement that the countries will play a role, Netanyahu has shifted to highlighting his opposition to a Turkish and Qatari military presence there.
“Turkish soldiers and Qatari soldiers will not be in the Strip,” he said in a speech from the Knesset rostrum on Monday
While Turkey has expressed interest in joining the multinational force meant to oversee Gaza’s security, the idea has not even been entertained by Qatar, as the Gulf state’s military is not suitable for such a contribution, sources familiar with the matter told The Times of Israel.
Netanyahu made the remarks during a so-called 40-signatures debate in the Knesset, a monthly opportunity for lawmakers to compel the prime minister to speak and answer his opponents after they garner the requisite number of signatories on a petition. This month’s debate was initiated by Ra’am party leader Mansour Abbas, and he called the premier to account for authorities’ response to rampant crime in Arab Israeli locales.
But as is customary, Netanyahu and his opponents used the session as an opportunity to attack each other on a range of hot-button issues. The stakes were high on Monday, with the government rushing to pass the 2026 state budget, and with an election approaching later in the year.
Netanyahu, in his remarks, also promised that Hamas would be disarmed in Gaza and threatened to strike back harshly at Iran if it attacks Israel. He claimed he had “nothing to hide” regarding his conduct surrounding the Hamas-led October 7, 2023, attack. And he took shots at Opposition Leader Yair Lapid.
Lapid, in his own speech, accused Netanyahu of failure in the Gaza war, of capitulating to extremists in his coalition, and of undermining the IDF. He said the prime minister had left Israel........