Israel 'to take charge of Gaza security'

Netanyahu reveals plan to maintain control and little pauses’ in strikes to allow entry of aid

- Lydia Chantler-Hicks

ISRAEL’S prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu today insisted that the country would have “overall security responsibility” in Gaza when the war with Hamas is over.

He said Israel would have security responsibility “for an indefinite period... because we’ve seen what happens when we don’t”.

Mr Netanyahu’s comments, in an interview with US network ABC News, offered the clearest indication yet that Israel plans to maintain control of the territory that is home to some 2.3 million Palestinians.

The situation has been likened to the West Bank, the other Palestinian territory, where Israel is responsible for security but not municipal control.

Mr Netanyahu, below, also said Israel would consider “tactical little pauses” in fighting to facilitate the entry of aid or the exit of hostages from the Gaza Strip, but again rejected calls for a ceasefire despite international pressure.

His interview came as the death toll in Gaza since Israel’s retaliatory strikes began after October 7 rose past 10,000, including some 4,100 children, according to the territory’s Hamas-run health ministry.