Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is prepared to gather his top security cabinet on Thursday to deliberate on broadening the conflict against Hamas, which may lead to the potential complete military occupation of the Gaza Strip.
This development coincides with the 20th anniversary of Israel’s full withdrawal from the area. The idea of resettling the region—once limited to political outliers—has now gained traction within mainstream discourse, including the government, especially after Hamas’s attack on October 7th.
Yitzhak Wasserlauf, Israel’s minister for the Development of the Periphery, the Negev, and the Galilee, described the potential rebuilding of Jewish communities in Gaza as “a historic correction to a national injustice” in a conversation with Fox News Digital.
Amidror, a distinguished fellow with the Jewish Institute for National Security of America, emphasized that Israel should maintain long-term responsibility for Gaza’s security, pointing to prior failures when security responsibilities were handed to the Palestinians post-Oslo Accords. He noted that reestablishing settlements could complicate this objective, arguing that security should be managed exclusively by the IDF.
Simcha Rothman, a Religious Zionism lawmaker, expressed to Fox News Digital that striving for peace should not preclude Jews from living in their ancestral homeland. Nonetheless, he admitted it is not among Israel’s official wartime goals. “Although resettling Gaza is the right course of action, it is not aligned with the current efforts,” he remarked.
Maj. Gen. (ret.) Amos Yadlin, the former head of IDF Military Intelligence, reiterated that resettling in Gaza does not align with the formal war objectives outlined by the Israeli government.
“If Israel needs to reoccupy Gaza militarily, it should be to destroy Hamas and bring back the hostages — not to annex Gaza as part of Israel. There are 2 million Palestinians in Gaza, maybe more,” Yadlin, who is currently president of MIND Israel, told Fox News Digital.
Memorials at the site of the Oct. 7 Hamas terror attack on the Supernova music festival near Kibbutz Re’im, Israel, on Monday, May 27, 2024. (Kobi Wolf/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
“Israel does not want to rule over them or provide for all their needs. It would cost billions and alter the demographic balance. This idea is being pushed by right-wing elements in the government, and even the prime minister and his party do not support it,” he said.
Daniella Weiss, general director of the Nachala Settlement Movement, told Fox News Digital that the aftermath of Hamas’s October 7 attack signals the start of a new era. “I think we should go much further than what existed in 2005. Back then, we were 10,000 people in Gaza. Our movement, Nachala, has proposed a plan for 1.2 million Jews in Gaza,” Weiss said.
Israelis march from Sderot toward the northern border of Gaza, calling for the re-establishment of settlements in the territory, on July 30, 2025 in Israel. (Mostafa Alkharouf/Anadolu via Getty Images)
She said her organization is already taking tangible steps to begin the process, “We’ve organized six groups of young families—more than 1,000 families—who are willing to move to Gaza now,” she said.
While Weiss expressed regret that the Israeli government has not included Jewish resettlement in its official war objectives, she insisted that in Israel’s democracy, public pressure can influence government policy.
“The basic truth is that the Gaza area is part of the western Negev,” she said. “Historically, it was part of the area of the tribe of Yehuda. To turn your back on that is wrong.”
