Israeli defence minister vows military to remain in Gaza

JERUSALEM, Dec 23 (Reuters) - Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz said on Tuesday that the military would never fully withdraw from the Gaza Strip for security reasons and that a civilian-military army unit would be established in the Palestinian enclave.

According to a U.S.-backed peace plan signed by both Israel and Hamas in October, the Israeli military will gradually withdraw completely from the coastal enclave and Israel will not re-establish civilian settlements in the coastal territory.

"We are located deep inside Gaza and we will never leave all of Gaza. There will never be such a thing. We are there to protect, to prevent what happened," Katz said in a speech, referring to Hamas' October 7, 2023 raid on Israel.

The office of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declined to comment.

Referring to units of the Israeli military, Katz said: "When the time comes, in northern Gaza ... we will build Nahal units instead of the (Israeli) communities that were displaced. We will do so in the right way at the right time."

"We don't trust anybody else to protect our citizens," he said, pointing to what he said was also a need to be also in Lebanon and Syria.

Katz's mention of displaced communities appeared to refer to Israel's withdrawal of all Jewish settlements from Gaza in 2005.

Netanyahu has repeatedly ruled out the possibility of re-establishing settlements in Gaza throughout the two-year Gaza war, although some ultra-nationalist members of his coalition seek to reoccupy Gaza.

Nahal units in Israel's armed forces are for civilians interested in enlisting in the military, which includes a year of pre-military preparatory and volunteer programmes. These units have had a historic role in creating Israeli communities.

Israel is heading into an election year in 2026 and the issue of settlements is expected to be a key issue.

Katz was speaking at a ceremony in the Israeli-occupied West Bank announcing the establishment of 1,200 housing units in the Israeli settlement of Beit El. The units are being built in place of an Israeli military base that is being shut.

Speaking about the West Bank, Katz said: "Netanyahu's government is a settlements government... it strives for action. If we can get sovereignty, we will bring about sovereignty... We are in the practical sovereignty era," Katz said. "There are opportunities here that haven't been here for a long time."

(Reporting by Tamar Uriel-Beeri and Steven Scheer, Editing by William Maclean)