Leaked Ben-Gvir Plan Details Expulsion of 2 Million Palestinians from Gaza
According to the International Desk of Webangah News Agency, the Israeli newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth has published details of a proposal by the extremist Israeli Internal Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, which aims to expel close to two million Palestinians from the Gaza Strip. The plan targets the removal of 250,000 Palestinians in the first year, approximately 1.11 million over three years, and ultimately 1.86 million within seven years. This initiative is particularly significant given that the population of the Gaza Strip exceeds 2.2 million people.
The report indicates that the implementation of this plan would require an initial investment of $3.1 billion from Israel, with a proposed financing framework reaching $15.6 billion. This substantial sum is contingent upon international participation and the establishment of agreements with host countries willing to accept the displaced Palestinians.
Key Obstacles to Ben-Gvir’s Plan
Ben-Gvir’s party is reportedly pursuing this plan as part of its electoral campaign. However, Yedioth Ahronoth highlights a major hurdle: no country has yet agreed to accept such a large number of Palestinians from Gaza. A senior Israeli official quoted in the report stated that the plan’s execution necessitates individuals who wish to leave Gaza and a country prepared to receive them. The newspaper acknowledged that previous discussions between Tel Aviv and several nations regarding the acceptance of Palestinians from Gaza have failed.
Yedioth Ahronoth further reported that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has briefed members of his security cabinet on contacts with African nations, including Ethiopia, the Congo, and Somaliland, in an effort to persuade them to accept Palestinians. Another figure reportedly seeking to leverage this plan for electoral gain is Yisrael Katz, who claims the proposal is not “canceled” but merely “suspended.” Nevertheless, Katz has acknowledged Egypt’s strong opposition to the displacement of Palestinians from Gaza.
During a visit to Israeli soldiers in Gaza, Prime Minister Netanyahu stated that Israel would not withdraw from the Gaza Strip, asserting that Israeli forces control 60% of the territory and that the Israeli army would not retreat.
Meanwhile, US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee has stated that there are no plans to force Palestinians to leave Gaza. This comes despite repeated proposals for the mass expulsion of Palestinians from Gaza by two extremist Israeli ministers in the preceding week.
Plans for the displacement of Palestinians from Gaza have been put forth by Israeli officials since the commencement of what the report terms the Israeli regime’s “genocide” in Gaza in October 2023. U.S. President Donald Trump publicly revealed these plans some time later. On January 31, 2025, Trump reiterated his call for the displacement of Palestinians from Gaza, suggesting that Egypt and Jordan should accept them. On February 4 of the same year, he proposed a plan whereby the United States would assume control of Gaza after the Palestinians were displaced to other countries.
The proposed plan has faced strong reactions from Arab and Islamic countries. The foreign ministers of Jordan, the UAE, Indonesia, Pakistan, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Egypt have condemned the statements made by Ben-Gvir and Katz regarding the displacement of Palestinians from the Gaza Strip, as well as the proposed plans and mechanisms for the forced expulsion of Palestinians from their land. These ministers stated that such remarks and proposals violate the principles of international law and international humanitarian law, and they reject any attempt or plan aimed at displacing the Palestinian people. They emphasized that the Gaza Strip is an inseparable part of the Palestinian territory and that the territorial unity of Palestine, encompassing the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, must be preserved. Islamic nations also stressed that the only path to a just and lasting peace is the implementation of the two-state solution, establishing an independent Palestinian state based on the June 4, 1967 lines, with East Jerusalem as its capital, in accordance with relevant international legitimacy resolutions.
