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‘Embrace the land with love’: Israelis call for Gaza resettlement
Far-right Israelis held a march in Sderot, near the border with Gaza, attended by ministers who called for the reoccupation of Gaza. It coincided with the anniversary of Israel’s creation in 1948, in which more than 700,000 Palestinians were forcibly displaced.
Israeli’s Communications Minister Shlomo Karhi, a member of the governing Likud Party, and hardline Knesset member Zvi Sukkot, of the Religious Zionist Party, were among those calling for the reestablishment of Israeli settlements in Gaza.
“For preserving the security achievements that our soldiers lost their lives for, we must resettle Gaza with security forces and settlers that will embrace the land with love,” Karhi said.
National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir said, “First, we must return to Gaza now. We are coming home to the holy land. And second, we must encourage migration – encourage the voluntary migration of the residents of Gaza. It is moral.”
Palestinian rally: ‘Your Independence Day is our catastrophe’
Thousands of people have taken part in an annual march through the ruins of villages that Palestinians were expelled from during the 1948 war that led to Israel’s creation.
Wrapped in keffiyeh scarves and waving Palestinian flags, men and women rallied through the abandoned villages of al-Kassayer and al-Husha – many holding signs with the names of dozens of other demolished areas their families were displaced from.
“Your Independence Day is our catastrophe” was the slogan for the protest, which took place as Israelis celebrated the 76th anniversary of the proclamation of the State of Israel.
Among those marching was Abdul Rahman al-Sabah, 88. He described how members of the Haganah, a Zionist paramilitary group, forced his family out of al-Kassayer near the northern city of Haifa when he was a child.
They “blew up our village, al-Kassayer and the village of al-Husha, so we would not return to them, and they planted mines”, he said, his eyes glistening with tears.
How Israel was created
Israel’s founding father, David Ben-Gurion, proclaimed the modern state of Israel on May 14, 1948, a day before the scheduled end of British rule, establishing a safe haven for Jews fleeing persecution and seeking a national home on land to which they cite ties dating to antiquity.
How the war on Gaza changed the narrative among young people
The Stream looks into how the war on Gaza has been reshaping global perceptions, particularly among youth in the West, and what potential long-term reforms that might bring.
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