Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz has said the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) will remain in security zones in Lebanon, Syria, and Gaza for an unlimited period.

Axar.az reports, citing Israeli media, that military commanders still lack clarity over deployment boundaries, rules of engagement, and whether gains against Hezbollah can be maintained.

In a statement issued on Monday morning, Katz said: “Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and I are pursuing a clear policy stating that the IDF will remain in the security zones in Lebanon, Syria, and Gaza without a time limit in order to protect the border and Israeli communities from jihadist elements. The area will be cleared of local residents, and all terror infrastructure, above and below ground, including homes in frontline villages that served as terror outposts, will be destroyed.”

“Holding the territory and the security zones is one of the IDF’s greatest achievements in the War of Revival, under the decisions and direction of the political echelon,” he said, using the official Israeli government designation for the Iron Swords war.

“Therefore, we oppose an IDF withdrawal from Lebanon, despite all the existing pressure and the pressure that will still come. Prime Minister Netanyahu made this clear to U.S. President Trump and other senior American officials, and I also made it clear yesterday to U.S. Secretary of War Pete Hegseth,” he added.