In a controversial statement on Sunday, Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich proposed the return of Jewish settlers to the Gaza Strip after any potential war, suggesting that the Palestinian population there should be "encouraged" to emigrate to other countries.
Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, Reuters/Amir Cohen
In a controversial statement on Sunday, Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich proposed the return of Jewish settlers to the Gaza Strip after any potential war, suggesting that the Palestinian population there should be "encouraged" to emigrate to other countries.
"To achieve security, we need to control the territory, and to maintain long-term military control, we need a civilian presence," Smotrich stated in an interview with military radio, responding to a question about the possibility of reestablishing settlements in the Gaza Strip.
In 2005, Israel withdrew its army and approximately 8,000 settlers from the Gaza Strip, which had been under Israeli occupation since 1967, as part of a unilateral withdrawal plan initiated by then-Prime Minister Ariel Sharon.
Bezalel Smotrich, the leader of the "Religious Zionism" party, is part of the current governing coalition. His controversial remarks have not been well-received by the government, and it's important to note that Israel has no intention of resettling Gaza or forcibly relocating its population.
This is not the first time Bezalel Smotrich has made inflammatory statements, often seen as attempts to mobilize his electoral base.
By Ronit Shor
A Lebanese official denied on Thursday a Reuters report that Beirut had agreed with Israel to a shortlist of countries that could send troops to Lebanon to verify the disarmament of Lebanese militant group Hezbollah, and said it was following up on the issue with Washington.
Israel won't withdraw from southern Lebanon until Hezbollah is disarmed, the defence minister said on Thursday, qualifying remarks he made a day earlier that had suggested Israeli forces would occupy the territory indefinitely and drew U.S. criticism.
Israeli troops clashed with Jewish settlers on Wednesday while trying to disperse them from a West Bank outpost they set up directly in front of Palestinian homes, and later withdrew from the area after failing to clear the settlers, witnesses said.
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