A far-right Israeli minister said Israel should “encourage” the region's more than two million Palestinian residents to move to other countries.
Year 2023 ended in the Gaza Strip without a glimmer of hope for peace as fighting raged between Israel and the terrorist organization Hamas. According to the Hamas-run Gaza Ministry of Health, victims of Israel's bombings the night before Sunday are still being dug out of the ruins. At least 48 people are said to have died in the attacks.
The Israeli army said it had killed more than ten enemy fighters in fierce ground battles. About 85 percent of the residents of the Gaza Strip have left their homes due to military operations.
Emotions heated up the far-right Israeli finance minister of Bezalel Smotrich Sunday's comment that Israel should establish settlements in Gaza again after the war.
“To guarantee security, we have to control the area. In order to be able to control the region militarily for a long time, the presence of civilians is also needed,” Smotrich told Israel Armed Forces Radio when asked about the new settlements.
Smotrich also said that Israel should “encourage” the territory's more than two million Palestinian residents to move to other countries. He implied that the goal should be to reduce the Palestinian population of Gaza to less than a tenth of its current size, i.e. to 100,000-200,000 people.
Hamas, which is fighting Israel in Gaza, condemned Smotrich's comments as a “disgusting mockery and a war crime”.
of Israel government prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu so far, the leadership has not officially communicated that Israel plans to drive the Palestinians out of Gaza or to bring Israeli civilians back to Gaza after the war. Israel's settlements in Gaza were abolished and the area fully withdrawn in 2005. Before this, Israel had had a continuous presence in Gaza since 1967.
Israeli settlements in the Occupied Palestinian Territories are against international law, regardless of whether the Israeli government supports their establishment or not.
War It has been going on in Gaza for almost three months. Israel declared war on Hamas after the extremist organization launched a surprise attack on Israel on October 7, killing about 1,140 people, according to Israeli officials.
According to the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry, a total of more than 21,800 people have died in Gaza in Israeli airstrikes and attacks.
According to the Israeli Armed Forces, 172 Israeli soldiers have died in the fighting.
Mediator countries are still trying to negotiate a new ceasefire between Israel and Hamas. In November, there was a week-long ceasefire between the parties, during which over 100 hostages were released from Gaza. It is believed that there are still at least 129 hostages in Gaza. In connection with the November ceasefire, Israel released 240 Palestinian prisoners from Israeli prisons.
“
Mediator countries are still trying to negotiate a new ceasefire.
In sections In Israel, the new year was greeted with rockets. According to journalists from the news agency AFP who were there, several rockets were fired from the Gaza Strip around the turn of the year towards Tel Aviv and the southern parts of Israel.
Journalists in Tel Aviv witnessed Israel's air defense system intercepting rockets as sirens blared. Some of those who gathered on the streets to celebrate the turn of the year sought shelter, while others continued to celebrate.
According to AFP reporters, the attack on southern Israel took place around midnight. Tel Aviv was hit about a minute after this.
Hamas's armed wing, the al-Qassam Brigades, announced in a video published on social media that it was behind both attacks. The group said it had used M90 rockets and said the strike was in response to massacres of civilians it blamed on Israel.
The Israeli armed forces confirmed the latest attacks in the message service in X (formerly Twitter) in an update released.
#Gaza #War #Israel39s #Finance #Minister #Settlements #built #Gaza
