Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz told U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Thursday that Israel is determined to maintain troops in so-called “security zones” carved out in Lebanon, Syria and the Gaza Strip.
In a statement, Katz’s office said the two men spoke overnight and the minister “emphasised Israel’s determination to remain in the security zones in Syria, Gaza, and Lebanon in order to protect Israel’s borders and the communities near the border from the threats …”
“We have never asked the United States to act in our place along our borders,” Katz said.
His comments come days after U.S. President Donald Trump asked Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to pull Israeli forces out of Syria and Lebanon, according to U.S. news outlet Axios.
Citing a U.S. official, Axios reported that Trump told Netanyahu the Israeli deployment was fueling tensions in Syria.
“They don’t want you there. You should redeploy,” Trump told him, according to Axios.
After the December 2024 overthrow of Syrian dictator Bashar Assad, Israel sent troops into a U.N.-patrolled buffer zone that separated Israeli and Syrian forces on the Golan Heights.
Israel has also carried out repeated incursions into Syrian territory since then, as well as bombings, and has said it wants a demilitarized zone in the country’s south.
In Lebanon, Israeli forces invaded what the military describes as a security zone extending roughly 10 kilometers (6 miles) into Lebanese territory.
Lebanon and Israel, which have no formal relations, are engaged in talks to end hostilities after Iran-backed armed group Hezbollah joined the broader Middle East war in March.
The two countries concluded their fifth round of talks in Rome Wednesday.
The U.S.-brokered negotiations are aimed at having Israeli forces steadily withdraw from Lebanon, starting with two “pilot zones” located outside the “security zone” that Israel has established in the south.
In Gaza, Israel’s military controls 60% of the territory and is present on the entire outside perimeter along the borders with Israel and Egypt.
