Smotrich: Israel setting up department to displace Palestinians from Gaza

Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich said yesterday the government will set up an “immigration directorate” to implement US President Donald Trump’s plan to displace Palestinians from the Gaza Strip and resettle them in a third country.

“This [Trump] plan is taking shape, with ongoing actions in coordination with the [US] administration,” Smotrich told members of the Knesset lobby the “Land of Israel” which works to advance illegal settlements in Palestinian territories.

“We are establishing a Migration Directorate, we are preparing for this thing headed by the prime minister and the defence minister. The budget won’t be an obstacle for this,” Smotrich said.

“Just to give you an idea – if we remove 10,000 people a day, seven days a week, it will take six months. If we remove 5,000 people a day, it will take a year. Of course, this is assuming we have countries willing to take them, but these are very, very, very long processes,” he added.

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Far-right Minister of Settlement and National Missions, Orit Strook, said during the meeting that even with Hamas removed as a “civilian and military authority”, “the threat” to Israel will persist – referring to civilians there – and therefore there has to be a plan to remove them.

“This is the direction we are heading, and I say this as a member of the government and the cabinet; the government will bear responsibility,” she added.

In turn, Israel Ganz, head of the Binyamin Regional Council, and the Yesha Council, the umbrella organisation of all illegal settlements in the occupied West Bank said: “Israel is going through a historic moment – ​​we have an American president who encourages us to think outside the box. We do not need more proposals, we need to start implementing this one!”

He claimed that the new “migration directorate” would include representatives from other government ministries and security agencies, and would oversee the implementation of a plan that would allow any Palestinian from Gaza to receive broad-based assistance that includes, among other things, special exit arrangements via sea, air and land.

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