Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz informed a bipartisan delegation of visiting U.S. senators on Sunday that Israel “will never agree to the establishment of a Palestinian state that would endanger its existence.”
During the meeting, Katz outlined Israel’s key priorities: preventing Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons, securing the release of hostages being held in Gaza by Hamas, and dismantling the terrorist group in the Strip. After achieving these objectives, Israel intends to pursue a normalization agreement with Saudi Arabia, Katz told the senators.
U.S. President Donald Trump’s Gaza plan “is the only one that can guarantee security for the residents of the south and the State of Israel after the lessons learned from the events of Oct. 7,” said Katz.
Trump’s proposal envisions the relocation of its two million residents and its clearing and rebuilding under U.S. direction.
The delegation, led by Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham, also included Deputy Mideast Envoy Morgan Ortagus. Other attendees were Democratic senators Sheldon Whitehouse, Richard Blumenthal, Adam Schiff and Andy Kim, alongside Republican senators Joni Ernst, Dan Sullivan and John Cornyn.