Ben Gvir Says He Would Be ‘Very Happy’ To Live in Gaza

The Israeli national security minister repeated his call for the expulsion of Palestinians and the establishment of Jewish settlements in Gaza

Israeli Minister of National Security Itamar Ben Gvir has repeated his call for the expulsion of Palestinians from Gaza to make room for Jewish settlers and said he would be “very happy” to live in the Strip.

In an interview with the Haredi news outlet Kikar HaShabat, Ben Gvir said Israel must have complete control of Gaza. “Only the state of Israel. No one else. A full occupation of Gaza. Israeli control. Jewish settlement,” he said. “But that is not enough. There is another very important, essential step, which is encouraging emigration.”

When asked if he meant the re-establishment of Jewish settlements that were dismantled in 2005, Ben Gvir said Israel should go much further. “Not only that. If we do indeed see emigration, with hundreds of thousands leaving, we can bring in more and more and more people,” he said, adding, “I will be very happy to live in Gaza.”

Ben Gvir and other Israeli officials have framed their desire for the ethnic cleansing of Palestinians from Gaza as “voluntary migration,” but the Israeli onslaught is making the Strip uninhabitable and could give the Palestinians no choice but to leave if they have the option.

While Ben Gvir and other members of his Jewish Power party are considered extremists in Israeli politics, he has significant power as the minister of national security, where he oversees Israeli police, prisons, and border guards. The desire for a total takeover of the Gaza Strip is also shared by other political parties, including Netanyahu’s Likud.

Communications Minister Shlomo Karhi, a member of Likud, recently joined Ben Gvir at a march calling for settlements in Gaza and the expulsion of Palestinians. “In order to preserve the security achievements that our soldiers lost their lives for, we must resettle Gaza with security forces and settlers that will embrace the land with love,” Karhi said in a speech at the march.

Author: Dave DeCamp

Dave DeCamp is the news editor of Antiwar.com, follow him on Twitter @decampdave.