Israeli MP says he wants to 'cleanse' Gaza of Palestinians

A Knesset member from Israel's ruling Likud party has said he wants to "cleanse" the Gaza Strip of Palestinians before they launch another attack.

Amit Halevi told Radio 103FM on Sunday that "occupation is the nature of war".

“We want to occupy the territory to cleanse it of the enemy - otherwise, it will kill your children and kidnap your grandchildren again,” he said.

“For many months we have only been dealing with tactics and not with defeating Hamas.”

Speaking about the negotiations for a hostage-ceasefire deal, Halevi said that there was no possibility of ending Israel's attacks on Gaza.

“The senior command has begun to understand that it is impossible to defeat terrorism without controlling the territory and the population," he said.

At least 921 Palestinians have been killed since Israel resumed its war on Gaza on 18 March, according to the Palestinian health ministry.

Over 50,000 have been killed since 7 October 2023. Palestinians and the international community hoped that the war was over after a truce agreement was reached in late January. 

'We want to occupy the territory to cleanse it of the enemy - otherwise, it will kill your children and kidnap your grandchildren again'

- Amit Halevi, Likud lawmaker

However, Israel refused to proceed with the second stage of the deal, saying it aimed to apply maximum pressure on Hamas to secure the release of Israeli captives.

Israel violated the ceasefire on numerous occasions, killing dozens of Palestinians before its pre-dawn onslaught on 18 March that killed 400 Palestinians, including at least 183 children.

Hamas has insisted that the two sides keep to the original agreement for a three-phase ceasefire and cessation of the war.

When asked about whether Palestinians left in the Gaza Strip would be given Israeli citizenship following a takeover, Halevi said that their status would need to be determined.

“We want to distinguish between the status of the territory and control over it, and the status of the residents, which is definitely something that deserves to be defined," he explained. 

"When you give control over education, culture, and religion, you get the results you get.”

Israel closed the borders on 2 March, halting the entry of all humanitarian aid, food, and goods into Gaza, bringing the enclave to the brink of famine once again.

The UN World Food Programme’s director in Palestine has warned that over 90 percent of Gaza's population is now food insecure amid Israel's new aid blockade on the territory.