Israeli minister presents plan to remove Gaza population

Israel's far-right national security minister, Itamar Ben Gvir, has proposed a plan to relocate Palestinians from the Gaza Strip and relocate them to other countries during the upcoming Israeli elections. According to the plan, 250,000 Palestinians would be removed from Gaza in the first year, with the remaining two million residents to be relocated over the next six years.

Ben Gvir claimed that some countries are ready to accept Gazans, though he did not specify which nations. He emphasized that the aim of the plan was not to force Palestinians to leave their land, but to encourage voluntary emigration. The right-wing populist party he represents, Jewish Power, plans to demand a ministry in charge of emigration if they join the next government coalition.

Ben Gvir presented his plan in a 20-page document, stating that it was the result of a year and a half of work and represented a concrete solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. However, it remains unclear how far the ruling right-wing coalition will follow through on transferring Palestinians from Gaza. The upcoming election on October 27 is expected to be close, and there is no guarantee that the current parties in power will retain their positions.

Meanwhile, other far-right ministers such as Defence Minister Israel Katz and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich have also advocated for removing Palestinians from Gaza, with Smotrich even proposing extending the measure to Palestinians in the West Bank. US President Donald Trump expressed support for the idea at the beginning of his second term, calling for Palestinians to leave the Gaza Strip and envisioning the territory as a luxury resort destination.

However, he later walked back the idea following international condemnation. The Israeli offensive in Gaza has already displaced the vast majority of Palestinians in the territory, with over 73,000 people internally displaced since the Hamas attack on October 7, 2023. Over 73,470 people have been killed in Gaza since the offensive began, with more than 1,330 deaths since the ceasefire.