Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir said on Monday that he wanted to build a “luxurious” neighborhood for Israeli police on the ruins of Gaza and repeated his calls for the settlement of Jews and the expulsion of Palestinians from the Strip, The Times of Israel has reported.
“We will finish the mission, occupy Gaza,” Ben Gvir told a cheering crowd at the National Police Academy in Beit Shemesh, Israel. He said that once the occupation is complete, he wants to “establish a neighborhood of police officers” on Gaza’s Coast, which he said would include high-rise buildings.
“The time has come to settle — Jewish settlement, the time has come to encourage voluntary emigration [of Gazans], the time has come to bring the death penalty for terrorists,” Ben Gvir added.
“Voluntary migration” is a term that Ben Gvir, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and other high-level Israeli officials use to discuss their ultimate goal of the ethnic cleansing of the Palestinians from Gaza. Ben Gvir has been one of the leading proponents of forcibly removing Palestinians from Gaza and establishing Jewish settlements.
Last year, Ben Gvir, who is a West Bank settler, said he would be “very happy” to live in Gaza and said the removal of Palestinians from the territory was an “essential step” for future Israeli control and settlement of the Strip.
