Ben-Gvir calls for nightly killings of 30–40 in Gaza, urges settlements and mass emigration
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Jerusalem: Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir has publicly advocated for carrying out “targeted assassinations” in Gaza every night, saying Israel should be killing “30 to 40” people daily, including those who do not pose an immediate threat.
The remarks, made in a podcast interview with former Hamas-held hostage Rom Braslavski and circulated on August 16, have drawn swift condemnation from Palestinian officials and rights groups, and renewed scrutiny of far-right rhetoric in Netanyahu’s coalition ahead of Israeli elections due on October 27.
Discussing Israel’s response to the October 7, 2023 Hamas attacks, Ben-Gvir criticised the recent reduction in Israeli strikes on Gaza. “It’s no secret, I disagree with the prime minister,” he said.
“I think targeted assassinations should be carried out in Gaza, taking down 30 to 40 every night. Not just those who pose an immediate threat — there are people there who are not worthy of life. They shouldn’t live. They’re not even people,” Ben-Gvir said in the interview, excerpts of which were reported by multiple international outlets.
He also called for mass emigration of Palestinians from Gaza and the re-establishment of Jewish settlements across the enclave. “I see all of Gaza as ours,” he said. “Settlements not just in Gush Katif but throughout Gaza, encouraging as much emigration as possible, sending them to their countries, and for the terrorists, no emigration, nothing, just to kill them one by one.”
Ben-Gvir does not have direct command over the Israel Defence Forces and cannot order strikes on Gaza. However, as National Security Minister he exercises substantial control over key parts of Israel’s security apparatus, including the national police and the prisons service, which holds thousands of Palestinians from Gaza and the West Bank.
He has previously boasted of reducing food rations for Palestinian prisoners. In 2025, Israel’s Supreme Court ruled that the prison service under his watch was depriving Palestinian detainees of a minimum subsistence diet.
The comments come amid a fragile truce framework and renewed debate over the pace and scope of Israeli operations in Gaza. Until recently, Israel was striking Gaza nearly every day; attacks since an October truce deal came into effect have killed more than 1,250 people, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry.
Israeli media reported last week that the authority to approve strikes has been tightened and limited to the army’s chief of staff, a move that has angered right-wing lawmakers including Ben-Gvir.
US President Donald Trump has proposed a plan under which Hamas would gradually hand over weapons while Israeli forces halt attacks and begin withdrawing from parts of Gaza. Hamas has said it accepts the deal in principle but has linked the surrender of its heaviest weapons to the creation of a Palestinian state, a condition Israel’s current government rejects.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said Israel will not retreat from any positions in Gaza until Hamas is completely disarmed, leaving other ceasefire elements — including the deployment of international forces and reconstruction — on hold.
Similar statements by Ben-Gvir and other Israeli officials have in the past been cited in international forums, including at the UN’s top court, as evidence of genocidal intent; Israel denies committing genocide in Gaza. International lawyers have described proposals for mass forced emigration from Gaza as potentially amounting to ethnic cleansing.
Israeli domestic media gave limited coverage to the latest remarks, even as figures like Ben-Gvir have grown more popular among sections of the Israeli public since the 2023 Hamas attacks, in which about 1,200 people were killed and 251 taken hostage.
(Inputs from AP)