“Israel’s” Smotrich Calls for Annexing Lebanese Territory, 60% of Gaza

By Staff, Agencies

“Israeli” Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich has called for the occupation and de facto annexation of around 60% of the Gaza Strip, saying the Palestinian territory should be brought under “Israeli” control and “become our land.”

Smotrich further called for the annexation of Lebanese territory, saying, “The same applies in Lebanon, where the territories must be annexed at least up to the lines where we are stationed today.”

Smotrich heads the far-right Religious Zionism party and is a member of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s coalition.

He has repeatedly advocated territorial expansion in the occupied Palestinian territories and Lebanon.

Earlier this month, he called for permanent “Israeli” sovereignty over territory held by the “Israeli” occupation in Gaza and Lebanon. Reuters reported earlier that the “Israeli” military still occupies about two-thirds of Gaza, despite the October 2025 ceasefire.

“Israeli” security sources have revealed that “Israel” has begun implementing a plan to establish "buffer zones and advanced security barriers” along the borders of occupied Palestine with Egypt, Jordan, Syria, and Lebanon, as well as around the Gaza Strip.

According to “Israeli” reports, Netanyahu announced the start of the government plan, which aims to reinforce security measures and expand the military presence on multiple fronts under the pretext of addressing what he called “regional challenges and threats.”

Netanyahu also threatened to launch a new phase of wide-scale attacks in cities across the occupied West Bank and inside the 1948 occupied Palestinian territories, amid escalating confrontations and the expansion of security operations across several fronts.