BY Melanie Lidman and Will Jarrett
June 18, 2026
Over the past two and a half years, Israel has taken control of swaths of Gaza, Lebanon and Syria that amount to its biggest expansion of militarily occupied lands in decades.
It is an area larger than many major cities — roughly 1,000 square kilometers (386 square miles) — and Israel has said it plans to stay indefinitely.
The land seizures began in the aftermath of Hamas’ 2023 cross-border attack, which ignited wars on multiple fronts. The Israeli military took over large portions of Gaza as part of a broad invasion, and later seized control of chunks of Lebanon and Syria. Israel calls these areas “buffer zones” and says they are needed to prevent future attacks by militant groups.
