Smotrich Urges Netanyahu to Seize Gaza, Impose Military Rule and Allow Settlements

Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich called on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to direct the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) to assume full control of the Gaza Strip, establish a military government there and permit Jewish settlement, in remarks delivered to students at the Sderot Yeshiva on Sunday.

Speaking in the presence of Yeshiva head Rabbi David Fendel and Sderot Mayor Alon Davidi, Smotrich made his appeal following a day and night of targeted IDF operations in Gaza and amid discussions of a multi-point U.S. proposal aimed at disarming Hamas.

"The State of Israel must agree to take responsibility for Gaza. To conquer it completely, establish a military government there, establish Jewish settlement there," Smotrich said as the new semester opened at the yeshiva.

Smotrich argued that Israeli security depends on permanent Israeli presence and settlement. "Over time it has been proven that where there is settlement, there is an army and there is security, and where there is no settlement, over time there is no army and there is no security," he said.

IDF SOLDIERS operating in the Gaza Strip. (credit: IDF SPOKESPERSON'S UNIT)

He also urged the government to promote voluntary emigration from Gaza, a measure that has support among some factions on the Israeli right. Smotrich criticized international alternatives, warning that Israel cannot rely on foreign forces to carry out the campaign he described.

"There is no one in the world who will do the work for us. There is no country in the world that will send its soldiers to shed their blood and forcibly disarm Hamas," he told the students. "It is either us or them."

Smotrich framed the choice in stark terms: either Israel governs Gaza directly—or, he warned, "terror will rule Gaza." He reiterated his three-part prescription for the territory: conquest, military government and settlement.

Context: Sderot and October 7

Sderot, a city roughly one kilometer from the Gaza border, was among the communities hit hardest by Hamas' October 7 attacks, suffering dozens of civilian, police and military deaths. Reconstruction efforts are under way and many residents have since returned after initially evacuating to other parts of the country.

The remarks reflect an uncompromising stance within parts of Israel's government about how to neutralize Hamas and secure the country’s southern border. They also underscore tensions with proposals that call for international or third-party security arrangements in Gaza.