Israeli ministers join Gaza border march calling for settlements to return
The march challenged an army restriction imposed over fears that participants would try to cross the fence into Gaza.
By James Whitfield · Staff Writer
3 min read
Israeli cabinet ministers and lawmakers joined a pro-settlement march toward Gaza on Sunday, according to Al Jazeera, adding high-level political backing to demands to rebuild Jewish settlements in the territory. The event showed how calls to resettle Gaza, once associated with the political fringe, have gained space in Israel’s national politics, the network reported.
Al Jazeera said the march went ahead despite an Israeli military order limiting access to the area. The army had declared the surrounding zone closed for 24 hours, saying the step was intended to prevent participants from crossing the fence into Gaza, according to the report.
The event was organized by Nachala, a settler group that called it the “March of Thousands,” Al Jazeera reported. Nachala said more than 10,000 people attended, while Israeli media cited by Al Jazeera put the turnout at a few hundred.
Israeli media reported that Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, who also has authority over settlement affairs, and National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir took part, along with more than two dozen ministers and legislators, according to Al Jazeera. The network also reported that Smotrich and Ben-Gvir have been sanctioned by several European countries.
Marchers sought return to evacuated settlements
Participants marched under a slogan about “returning home after 21 years,” Al Jazeera reported, referring to Israel’s 2005 withdrawal from Gaza, when about 8,500 Jewish settlers were evacuated. The marchers called for the rebuilding of Elei Sinai, Dugit and Nisanit, three settlements removed during that withdrawal, according to the report.
Al Jazeera reported that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud party appeared among the rally’s sponsors, even as Netanyahu has said Gaza will not be resettled. Ben-Gvir, who serves in Netanyahu’s cabinet, posted video of himself at the march with the caption “Gaza is ours,” according to Al Jazeera.
Smotrich urged Israelis not to miss what he called a “historic opportunity” to rebuild settlements in Gaza, Al Jazeera reported. Nachala is led by Daniella Weiss, a longtime advocate of Israeli resettlement in Gaza, and the network said she previously told a Likud conference that Palestinians would “disappear” from the territory.
Military restrictions challenged
Some marchers avoided checkpoints by moving through nearby hillsides to reach the Gaza border, Al Jazeera reported. The network said its verification unit confirmed video showing dozens of Israelis gathered at the border fence.
Palestinian lawyer and analyst Diana Buttu told Al Jazeera that Israel’s settlement efforts have been encouraged by a lack of accountability. “Because Israel has never been punished for its crimes, it’s only natural that a country that commits genocide and ethnic cleansing feels emboldened to steal more land,” she said.
Al Jazeera also reported that Nachala activists briefly entered Gaza in December and planted an Israeli flag before soldiers returned them to the Israeli side of the fence.
This story draws on original reporting from Al Jazeera.