National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir on Thursday visited Israeli communities near Gaza and the Netzarim Corridor that divides the Strip between north and south. He warned against IDF withdrawal from the corridor and advocating for Jews to return to live in parts of the Gaza Strip.
“We remember very well what happened when we left Netzarim [in the 2005 disengagement from the entire Strip] and the disaster it led to—it brought about October 7,” Ben-Gvir said. “Leaving the Netzarim Route must not happen; it would harm Israel’s security and give our enemies an ‘image of victory,'” allowing the terrorist organization to claim a significant achievement in the war.
Ben-Gvir emphasized the importance of returning hostages but argued that preventing future attacks is equally critical. He proposed stopping fuel shipments to Hamas and providing humanitarian aid only in return for humanitarian measures. The minister also reiterated his call to enable voluntary emigration of Gazans.
The tour, organized by the Knesset Caucus for Renewing Jewish Settlement in the Gaza Strip and the Nachala Movement, included several politicians, mostly from Ben-Gvir’s Otzma Yehudit Party.
MK Limor Son Har-Melech, co-chair of the caucus, said that “extensive and wide-ranging Jewish settlement” in Gaza is the “only optimistic vision that can console our people.”
MK Tzvi Sukkot of the Religious Zionism Party, who also chairs the caucus, said, “Victory over Hamas must be clear. Absolute victory will only be achieved when the side that started this war loses territory.”
Heritage Minister Amihai Eliyahu said, “I envision the State of Israel giving land and homes along the Gaza shore to all those who contributed to the nation’s revival. Our Jewish Gaza, just like Haifa, Tel Aviv and Jerusalem, belongs to us.”
MK Yitzhak Kroizer added, “We pray for the return of the hostages and strengthen the hands of IDF soldiers. We state clearly: Jewish settlement in the Gaza Strip is not only a historical right but also a top-tier security and strategic necessity.”
These calls for resettlement come despite Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ruling out Israeli civilian presence in Gaza after the war. Netanyahu told his Likud faction that Israel would maintain security control over Gaza but “we’re not seeking to govern Gaza.”
Likud MK Avichai Boaron also championed returning Israeli civilians to living in Gaza earlier this month when he said: “The war against fundamentalist Islam in the Gaza Strip must end with it losing control over the land. This is the most painful price it could pay.”
The Samaria Regional Council recently launched a campaign called “Returning to Gaza—A Zionist Response,” arguing that establishing Jewish communities is the only way to prevent future attacks.
Construction and Housing Minister Yitzhak Goldknopf said during a tour of Gaza in November that “Jewish settlement here is the answer to the terrible [Oct. 7] massacre and to the International Criminal Court in The Hague.”