At Jerusalem Rally, Ministers And Mks Call To Resettle Gaza With Jewish Communities

JERUSALEM (VINnews) — Hundreds of right-wing Israelis gathered for a rally in Jerusalem on Sunday evening, calling on Israel to rebuild settlements in Gaza and northern Samaria, regions which were evacuated during the 2005 disengagement.

12 Likud ministers as well as numerous right-wing Knesset members attended the event, which was dubbed an “Israel victory rally”. Jewish Force head Itamar Ben-Gvir and Religious Zionism leader Betzalel Smotrich also spoke at the rally, which took place at Binyanei Haumah.

Israel withdrew its military and settlers from Gaza in 2005 after a 38-year control, and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said it does not intend to maintain a permanent presence again, but that Israel would maintain security control for an indefinite period. There has been little clarity, however, about Israel’s longer-term intentions, and in the meantime countries including the United States have said that Gaza should be governed by Palestinians – a move opposed by a majority of Israelis.

The current rally was organized by the right-wing Nahala organization, which advocates for Jewish settlement expansion in territories including Judea and Samaria. The conference, which ran under the slogan “Settlement Brings Security,” was not organized by the Israeli government, although the current coalition has been criticized for supporting settlement expansion, a position seen as hindering a possible future two-state solution with the Palestinians.

A large map of the Gaza strip was displayed, with the names of all of the 21 communities uprooted in 2005 as well as six new planned settlements in the region.

השר בן גביר מדבר על ״עידוד הגירה״ של תושבי עזה בכנס ״התיישבות מביאה ביטחון״ ועל חוק עונש מוות למחבלים pic.twitter.com/cSb3b3TrvV

— בר שם-אור Bar Shem-Ur (@Bar_ShemUr) January 28, 2024

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Smotrich said that many of the children who were evacuated from settlements in Gaza had returned as soldiers to fight in a war with Hamas and that he had opposed the government’s decision to evacuate Jewish settlements from Gaza in the past. “We knew what that would bring and we tried to prevent it,” Smotrich said in a speech. “Without settlements, there is no security.” The crowd roared with enthusiastic chants to rebuild Jewish communities in Gaza.

Ben-Gvir said he had protested the evacuation of Jewish settlements from Gaza and warned it would bring “rockets upon Sderot” and “rockets upon Ashkelon” in southern Israel.

“We yelled and we warned,” Ben-Gvir said. “If you don’t want another October 7, we need to return home and control the land.”

Opposition leaders fumed at the gathering, claiming that it caused damage to Israel’s international image. Yesh Atid leader Yair Lapid described is as a “new nadir” for the government, which “caused international damage, damage to a possible deal, endangered IDF soldiers and was totally irresponsible.” Lapid still believes that Israel should restore the Palestinian Authority’s power in the Gaza strip after the war.