Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich's remarks fueled concerns among many Arab nations that Israel intends to expel Palestinians from Gaza, one of the areas where Palestinians seek to establish a future state. Such an action could once again plunge Palestinians into a "Nakba" (catastrophe) similar to that of 1948, when large numbers of Palestinians were forced to flee their homes following the Arab-Israeli war.
"What needs to be done in the Gaza Strip is to encourage migration... If the Gaza Strip had 100,000 or 200,000 Arabs instead of 2 million, then all discussions about the future would be completely different," Reuters quoted Smotrich as saying on Army Radio (Israeli military radio) on December 31, 2023.
He said that if the 2.3 million residents no longer "grew up there with the ambition to destroy the State of Israel," the Gaza Strip would be seen differently in Israel.
"Most of Israeli society would say, 'Why not? It's a beautiful place. Let's make the desert bloom; it doesn't harm anyone,'" the official commented.
Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich
Mr. Smotrich is a member of a far-right party with extreme nationalist and Jewish supremacist ideologies, attracting support from the Israeli settler community. He has made similar statements in the past, making him unpopular with the United States, Israel's most important ally.
However, his views do not reflect the official position of the Israeli government , which says that Gaza residents will be able to return to their homes after the war ends. Israel's war to eliminate Hamas, the force that has held de facto control of Gaza since 2007, is now entering its fourth month and shows no sign of stopping.
Smotrich's party had helped Netanyahu secure the majority needed to become prime minister for a sixth term nearly a year ago. However, the party has seen its support decline since fighting erupted in Gaza on October 7, 2023, following a surprise Hamas offensive in southern Israel.
Opinion polls also indicate that most Israelis do not support the re-establishment of Israeli settlements in Gaza. These settlements were dismantled after the Israeli military withdrew from Gaza in 2005.
Palestinians and Arab leaders have accused Israel of wanting to create a new "Nakba." This is the Arabic name for the tragic event, primarily occurring in 1948, when hundreds of thousands of Palestinians were forced to flee or be driven from their homes due to military conflict related to the establishment of the State of Israel.
Most Palestinians fled to neighboring Arab countries that year, and Arab leaders have stated that any move to expel Palestinians again would be unacceptable.
In a speech yesterday, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas condemned any actions aimed at forcing Palestinians to leave their homes. He said: "We will not allow displacement to happen, whether in the Gaza Strip or in the West Bank."
Israel withdrew its troops and settlers from Gaza in 2005 after 38 years of occupation, and Prime Minister Netanyahu has stated that they have no intention of maintaining a long-term presence again, but Israel will control Gaza's security for an unspecified period.
However, Israel's plans for the future of Gaza remain vague, and countries, including the US, have said that Gaza should be administered by the Palestinians.
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