Ministers Bezalel Smotrich and Orit Struck are pressing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to prevent any multinational or foreign military force from entering the Gaza Strip until Hamas has been completely disarmed and Gaza fully demilitarized, warning that preparations are already underway for a force that could eventually number some 5,000 troops.
The two ministers made their demand ahead of a scheduled Security Cabinet meeting, calling for the Cabinet to adopt an explicit decision establishing that no foreign forces may enter Gaza before Hamas’ weapons and military capabilities have been dismantled.
Their appeal follows what they described as rapidly advancing preparations for the deployment of a multinational force inside Gaza. Struck toured the area surrounding the LSA camp on Friday, a facility designated to accommodate ISF forces, and said she observed extensive preparations that, according to the ministers, go significantly beyond what Cabinet members had previously been told.
According to figures cited in their letter, residential infrastructure is currently being established at the camp for approximately 1,500 foreign troops. The facilities reportedly include 20 enormous tents and approximately 100 temporary structures.
The site also contains a fleet of military vehicles that the ministers said appears sufficient to support roughly 1,000 troops. Approximately 50 workers are reportedly continuing to prepare the base and bring equipment and construction materials into the facility.
Smotrich and Struck further claimed that once development of the site is completed, the camp could ultimately accommodate approximately 5,000 foreign troops.
At the same time, they said efforts are underway to locate additional land that could be used for more bases and storage facilities. Construction and preparation at the existing site are proceeding at a pace that could allow the infrastructure to be completed within several weeks, according to the ministers.
Smotrich and Struck warned that both the anticipated size of the multinational force and its intended mission differ substantially from what they say was previously presented to members of the Security Cabinet.
Their concerns are particularly acute, they said, because Hamas has shown no indication that it is prepared to surrender its weapons or accept the complete demilitarization of Gaza.
In their letter to Netanyahu, the ministers warned that Israel could soon find itself facing enormous international pressure to permit thousands of foreign troops to enter Gaza simply because the force and its infrastructure are already prepared for deployment.
“We must not reach a situation in which the multinational force, on such an enormous scale, is ready and waiting to enter the Gaza Strip, and enormous pressure is exerted on Israel to allow its entry, even though the demilitarization has not yet been carried out,” the ministers wrote.
Smotrich and Struck are therefore demanding that the Security Cabinet adopt what they described as a corrective decision at its upcoming meeting.
Under their proposal, Israel would formally declare that no multinational force — or any other foreign military force — will be permitted to enter the Gaza Strip until Hamas has been fully disarmed and the demilitarization of Gaza has been completed.
{Matzav.com}
