'I wanted Gaza swallowed by the sea': Ben-Gurion's 1956 remarks revealed
Newly released IDF archives reveal Ben-Gurion's opposition to annexing Gaza after the 1956 Sinai War and his warnings of terror and isolation.
Former Israeli Prime Minister David Ben-Gurion expressed his desire for the Gaza Strip to "sink into the sea" during the 1956 Sinai Campaign, also known as Operation Kadesh. In a cabinet meeting on October 28, 1956, he warned that future wars would result in devastating casualties, particularly among civilians, and cautioned against relying on the success of the Sinai Campaign as a predictor of future conflicts.
Ben-Gurion also addressed the challenges of maintaining Israeli control over Gaza, noting that continued control could result in severe moral and political costs. Shimon Peres, who served as director-general of the Defense Ministry at the time, described Ben-Gurion's seemingly contradictory decision to both go to war and withdraw, while warning that war alone would not resolve the Arab-Israeli conflict, as an Arab victory could be the final one.
The IDF and Defense Establishment Archive have recently made 4,500 photographs, documents, and maps, as well as accounts of Operation Honio and the Israel Air Force's activities during the war, available to the public to mark the 70th anniversary of Operation Kadesh.
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