The defense minister clarified his position following a report that he had privately told a U.S. official Jerusalem was not interested in controlling Gaza after the war.

Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said on Tuesday that the Israel Defense Forces will continue to maintain security control in the Gaza Strip after the war with Hamas concludes.

“In response to various reports, my position regarding Gaza is clear. After we defeat Hamas’s military and governing power in Gaza, Israel will maintain security control in Gaza with full freedom of action, just as in Judea and Samaria,” tweeted Katz in Hebrew.

“We will not allow any terrorist group to organize against Israeli communities and citizens from Gaza. We will not allow a return to the reality that existed before Oct. 7,” he added.

The statement came after Israel’s Channel 12 News reported that Katz had told a senior American official in a...