[News] Israeli Ministers Join Settlers’ March Calling for the Occupation of Gaza

[Anti-Imperialist News]

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Israeli Ministers Join Settlers’ March Calling for the Occupation of Gaza
Quds News Network
July 20, 2026
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[image: Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir joins
pro-settlement Israelis on a march towards the Gaza Strip [Amir
Cohen/Reuters]] Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir joins
pro-settlement Israelis on a march towards the Gaza Strip [Amir
Cohen/Reuters]

Israeli cabinet members and lawmakers have joined a far-right march towards
the Gaza Strip, calling for the rebuilding of illegal settlements in the
besieged Palestinian territory and the occupation of more areas.

Occupied Palestine (QNN)- Israeli cabinet members and lawmakers have joined
a far-right march towards the Gaza Strip, calling for the rebuilding of
illegal settlements in the besieged Palestinian territory and the
occupation of more areas.

The march on Sunday defied a military order that restricted their route at
the last minute over concerns that some participants planned to cross the
fence into the besieged Palestinian territory.

However, soldiers on the scene were sent by their commanders to drive the
ministers and lawmakers, including National Security Minister Itamar
Ben-Gvir and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, to the protest site near
the Gaza border fence.

The rally is the latest sign of how calls to occupy Gaza have moved from
the political margins into Israel’s mainstream political discourse.

Earlier, the Israeli army designated the surrounding area a closed military
zone for 24 hours, saying it was meant to stop marchers from crossing into
Gaza.

Nachala, the settler group behind the event, called it the “March of
Thousands” and said more than 10,000 attended, although Israeli media
reports estimated the crowd at only a few hundred.

Nachala is led by Daniella Weiss, who has long advocated Israel resettling
Gaza. Speaking at a Likud party conference, she said Palestinians would
“disappear” from the territory.

Some marchers bypassed checkpoints through nearby hillsides to reach the
Gaza border. A video also showed dozens of Israeli settlers gathered at the
border fence.

More than two dozen ministers and legislators took part in the marcy,
Israeli media reported.

Among the participants were women and children.

Smotrich and Ben-Gvir have been sanctioned by several European countries.

Marching under the banner “returning home after 21 years,” they demanded
the reconstruction of Elei Sinai, Dugit and Nisanit, three settlements
evacuated when Israel withdraw from Gaza in 2025.

Ben-Gvir, a member of Netanyahu’s cabinet, posted a video of himself among
the marchers with a caption: ‘Gaza is ours’.

Fellow cabinet minister Smotrich also called on Israeli settlers not to
miss a “historic opportunity” to rebuild settlements in Gaza.

"We erased the disgrace of the expulsion in northern Samaria, and with
God's help, we will do the same here in the Gaza Strip as well, with
determination and perseverance," Smotrich said, referring to the newly
approved settlements in the northern West Bank area, which was also cleared
of settlers during the 2005 Israeli pullout, alongside Gaza.

In December, a group of Nachala activists briefly crossed into Gaza and
planted an Israeli flag before soldiers brought them back across the fence.

The organizers of Sunday's march also said the march is taking place
against the backdrop of Defense Minister Israel Katz's remarks regarding
his intention to establish three military settlements in Gaza.

Last month, Smotrich said Israel is ready to begin building three Israeli
settlements in northern Gaza once it receives the government's approval.

"We are ready to establish a bloc of three settlements in northern Gaza
immediately, the moment we receive the green light from the prime
minister," he said.
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