Katz in oblique warning to Turkey: We won’t let anyone undermine stability through proxies in Gaza or elsewhere

Lazar Berman is The Times of Israel's diplomatic reporter

Defence Minister Israel Katz speaks during a joint press conference with his Greek counterpart in Athens on January 20, 2026. (Aggelos NAKKAS / AFP)
Defence Minister Israel Katz speaks during a joint press conference with his Greek counterpart in Athens on January 20, 2026. (Aggelos NAKKAS / AFP)

Issuing a thinly veiled warning to Turkey, Defense Minister Israel Katz says in Athens that Israel and Greece are determined “not to allow actors seeking to undermine regional stability to establish a foothold through terrorism, aggression, or military proxies — in Syria, in Gaza, in the Aegean Sea, or in any other arena — and to realize their dangerous ambitions.”

“Those who dream of dragging the region backward, establishing control through terror, or rebuilding empires at the expense of sovereign states will encounter a resolute alliance of free, strong nations capable of defending themselves,” Katz continues, alongside his Greek counterpart.

On the subject of Master Sgt. Ran Gvili, the last slain hostage held in Gaza, Katz stresses that “Hamas bears the responsibility to locate him and return him to Israel for burial without any delay.”

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