The “Coalition of Organizations for the Return to the Gaza Strip and All the Settlements of Northern Samaria” has been established by 11 leading right-wing organizations, in a series of meetings held under a veil of secrecy in recent weeks in the office of Samaria Regional Council Head Yossi Dagan, and the home of Nahala manager Zvi Elimelech Sharbaf.
The new coalition plans to call on Israelis to join settlement nuclei (gar’inim) that will rebuild the uprooted Jewish communities of Gush Katif, starting with the northern Gaza Strip and northern Samaria.
The new coalition issued a statement saying, “Of course, this is not about a mass settlement, but a broad public appeal to explain the importance of resettlement and the fact that repairing the failure (of October 7 – DI) goes through a return to the settlement enterprise, and the establishment of a broad system to assist the return to communities that were abandoned during the expulsion of 2005, while formulating a strategy for return at the political and judicial levels.”
In other words, the fledgling movement is not advocating the rogue resettlement of areas from which Jews were expelled by the Sharon-Olmert-Netanyahu government in 2005, but the creation of a popular movement to push for government-sanctioned resettlement.
ISRAELIS BELIEVE IN A TRANSFER
Channel 14 on Thursday night featured a Direct Polls survey on the Israeli public’s opinion regarding the future of the Gaza Strip the day after the victory over Hamas. And while it’s true that in this, as in every survey, the questions often determine the answer, the overall trend in Israeli public opinion favors a return to the days before 9 B’Av 2005.
Regarding the statement, “If the Palestinian Authority were able to carry out a massacre like the one done by Hamas, it would have,” 69% agreed, 15% agreed partially, and only 16% disagreed.
Regarding the question, “Do you agree that placing an international peacekeeping force in the Gaza Strip is dangerous, just as a similar attempt has failed in South Lebanon?” 77% agreed, 14% agreed partially, and only 9% disagreed.
There was a time when one risked being hauled to police questioning for uttering the statement, “Kahane was right” (Kahane Tzadak). But in Thursday’s survey, an astonishing 58% of respondents declared they want a full transfer of the Arabs out of Gaza, and believe that the entire population of Gaza should be evacuated even at the cost of international condemnations. Only 25% opposed this idea, and another 16% did not express an opinion on the matter.
Change Kahane Tzadak to Kahane Tzahak (laughed)?
The reason for the clear majority of respondents’ willingness to empty Gaza of its Arabs was made clear by their response to the survey’s question, “Do you agree that the Gazan population will grow new terror organization?” An astonishing 65% of respondents agreed, proving that while their leaders may still be in a haze about the chances for peace with the “Palestinians,” Israel’s vast majority is not buying it. Only 20% disagreed, and 15% agreed partially.
The survey was conducted among 1,422 sampled adults (18+) who constitute a representative sample of the general population in Israel. The statistical sampling error is 3.7% ± 95% probability.
YES, BUT IS IT REALISTIC?
Earlier this week, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was asked about the resettlement of Gush Katif and said, “It is not a realistic goal.” He preferred instead that “Gaza will be demilitarized and there will no longer be a threat from the Gaza Strip to Israel. For this to happen, full security control over the Gaza Strip is needed.”
Sharbaf of Nahala responded on Thursday: “Throughout Zionist history, settlement and security advanced hand in hand. The withdrawal from the Gaza Strip and the Oslo Accords harmed the security of the entire State of Israel, and the surest way to fix it is broad Jewish settlement throughout the Gaza Strip.”
Even if he supports resettlement, this is a goal Netanyahu cannot advocate openly, at least not while the war is going on, and in the face of the US zombie-like repetition of the 2-state-solution mantra. For now, the PM is relying heavily on American support both in resupplying the IDF and in fending off international attacks on Israel’s right of self-defense.
Meanwhile, some soldiers left the graffiti below on a wall in ruined Gaza: “Gush Katif, coming back home, we won’t forget and won’t forgive.”
על אחד הקירות בעזה חיילים השאירו מסר: “גוש קטיף חוזרים הביתה”. pic.twitter.com/7lCc3CJK3T
— שילה פריד?? (@shilofreid) November 15, 2023
And this soldier forcefully presented two options: returning to Gush Katif or returning to a repeat of October 7:
And a Rabbi from Evyatar Yeshiva and the Gar’in Torani in Ramat Hasharon, who was expelled from Gush Katif in 2005, kissed the sands of Gaza’s beach as Jews throughout history have kissed the soil of the Holy Land.
