Smotrich unveils plan to sell land near Lebanon border to ‘reinforce’ northern Israel

Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, a far-right member of the government, on Wednesday announced a new plan to sell building plots in northern Israel, near the Lebanese border.

The initiative, developed in coordination with Minister of Settlements and National Missions Orit Strock — a prominent figure in the settler movement and a member of Smotrich’s Religious Zionism party — was unveiled during a conference titled “Strengthening the North,” Israeli Channel 12 reported.

Smotrich also praised the terms of the cease-fire agreement with Lebanon that came into effect on Nov. 27, 2024, and insisted that Israel “will not withdraw from the [five] positions it occupies on Lebanese territory.”

He said the government would offer “serviced land, ready to build on, in the north of the country” for just 100,000 shekels (around $27,000), adding that military reservists would be eligible to buy the plots for only 50,000 shekels (around $14,800). He described the deal as “an offer you can’t refuse.”

“The state (of Israel) needs you,” he said, as northern Israel continues to recover from the nearly 13-month war with Hezbollah that began on Oct. 8, 2023, and ended with a fragile truce on Nov. 27, 2024. The terms of that cease-fire remain under negotiation and have been consistently violated by Israel.

Despite Hezbollah’s military losses and the ongoing cease-fire, many residents of northern Israel have yet to return to their homes. “They talk to us about returning, but there’s nowhere to return to,” said David Azoulay, head of the Metula municipal council — Israel’s northernmost town — in early March. Some 2,900 buildings were damaged in Israel during the fighting, according to a February estimate by former Housing Minister Ze’ev Elkin.

'Even Khamenei has lost hope in Hezbollah'

Smotrich said there is now “a real possibility that Hezbollah could be totally disarmed,” and claimed that Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei had “lost hope” in the party and is now “completely indifferent as to whether it is rebuilt or not.”

While U.S. envoy Tom Barrack has raised the prospect of a new agreement between Lebanon and Israel during recent visits to Beirut, Smotrich defended the current deal, calling it “a good agreement.” He argued that it gives Israel “full legitimacy to effectively prevent Hezbollah from reorganizing at the border.”

Despite the cease-fire, Israel has continued near-daily strikes on southern Lebanon, increased incursions along the border, and killed at least 285 people — both militants and civilians — since the truce began, according to a tally by the United Nations and L’Orient-Le Jour.

Israel also continues to occupy five positions on Lebanese territory, located on elevated ground near the border. Smotrich reaffirmed that the country “will not withdraw” from those areas, despite cease-fire terms calling for a full Israeli pullout from Lebanese land.