Construction is underway on two new military barracks, one in the eastern Negev and one in southern Lebanon, in the northern West Bank and east Jerusalem.
The Israeli army said on Monday that it will begin construction on the new military facilities in the Negevi.
The new barracks will be for soldiers aged between 18 and 32 and will house a total of 4,000 soldiers, including about 3,500 reservists.
Israel Defence Forces spokesman Lt.
Col. Gideon Levy said the new barracks would be used for training purposes, and not for any sort of active military operation.
“The construction of the barracks in the Nablus area will allow for the establishment of a training centre for the Israeli forces, as well as a training base for the Palestinian population,” he said in a statement.
“We have always said that it is essential that we continue to strengthen our army and that is why we are building a new facility for the soldiers and reservists of the Israeli armed forces in the central and northern West bank and the southern Jerusalem region,” Levy added.
A senior military official, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media, said the construction of new military sites was part of the army’s strategic plans.
Lebanese media reported on Sunday that Israel had ordered the construction and construction of a new military base in the south, east and north of the city of Bethlehem, which is home to about 1.6 million Palestinians.
Construction is ongoing on a new Israeli military barracks in southern Beirut, near the southern Israeli city of Nabluss.
There is no word yet on whether Israel intends to build a new barracks in Beirut.
An Israeli official said on Sunday it was “a matter of time” before the new facilities would be operational.
Israeli media reported that the Israeli military is planning to build the new bases in the Golan Heights and the Syrian Golan.
On Saturday, Israel launched a new operation to counter the rise of the Islamic State group (ISIS) in northern Syria.
In a video posted online, Israeli jets fired warning shots over the city and targeted ISIS fighters in a village in the Syrian border area, the official said.
Earlier, the Israeli army warned of a possible military response to the threat posed by ISIS. Reuters
