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Ben-Gvir’s expulsion plan
Israel’s far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir unveiled a plan to remove Palestinians from the Gaza Strip, saying it would move 250,000 Palestinians out of Gaza in its first year and then expel the rest of its two million population over six years.
“remove 250,000 Palestinians from the strip in its first year”
Ben-Gvir presented the proposal as “realistic” and said some countries were “ready” to take in Palestinians, while Defence Minister Israel Katz said plans to expel Gazans “by any means” remained under discussion in Israel but were frozen by US President Donald Trump.
The National Security Minister’s announcement came as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told a statement delivered in Gaza on Wednesday that Israel was not withdrawing from the strip and that “We control 60 per cent of the strip and there is still more to come, because we are eliminating the terrorists who threaten us – we do this day in and day out.”
The National reported that a poll of 1,005 Israelis conducted by the Geocartography Knowledge Group last year found 82 per cent of respondents supported the expulsion of Gaza’s residents.
The National also framed the forced transfer of civilians from occupied territory as a war crime under the Geneva Conventions, while Chris van Hollen criticised Israel Katz’s rhetoric as part of a plan to “ethnically cleanse Gaza of Palestinians”.
Condemnation and competing frames
Labour and rights critics condemned the proposal as coercive forced displacement, with Adalah calling Ben-Gvir’s plan “illegal, inhuman, and unacceptable by any measure.”
Adalah lawyer Muna Haddad said the proposal “must not be viewed as an isolated extremist move,” and linked it to “the ongoing war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide Israel is committing in Gaza.”
In parallel, CBC reported that Israel is waiting for U.S. approval to remove Palestinians from Gaza, quoting Defence Minister Israel Katz saying Israel is ready to facilitate what has been described as "voluntary emigration" of Palestinians in Gaza "by any means."
CBC also reported that Yedioth Ahronoth said Ben-Gvir would unveil the plan on Thursday and that it would reportedly remove Palestinians over the span of seven years, while Katz insisted there was “no real solution for Gaza in the end without this migration.”
The Guardian described Ben-Gvir’s plan as “illegal forced expulsion of all Palestinians from the Gaza Strip,” and quoted Netanyahu’s insistence that Israel “We are not withdrawing. We are staying on this line. We control 60% of the strip.”
Elections, US leverage, and fallout
The political push for expulsion is tied to Israel’s election timetable, with The National saying Israel is due to hold parliamentary elections on October 27 and that Ben-Gvir’s plan was announced at a press conference on Thursday.
“Do you know of a country that is willing to absorb Gazans on a significant scale?”
The National also reported that Israeli news outlet Ynet published an article saying the plan “already failed,” quoting diplomatic correspondent Itamar Eichner asking: “Do you know of a country that is willing to absorb Gazans on a significant scale?”
Meanwhile, CBC said Ben-Gvir is expected to present the plan dubbed "Disengagement 710" as part of his campaign in October's legislative elections, and it described Palestinians in Gaza as mostly rejecting the idea fearing it will result in forced expulsion.
CBC further reported that Israel’s assault on Gaza has killed more than 73,400 people according to the Gaza Health Ministry, and that the Israel Defence Forces currently control up to 70 per cent of Gaza according to Israeli sources cited in a July report.
Across the sources, the stakes are framed as whether displacement becomes permanent, with The National noting that the forced transfer of civilians from occupied territory is a war crime under the Geneva Conventions and with CBC quoting Umm Yusuf Shabat saying, “We were born and raised in Gaza, we will die and be buried in Gaza.”