Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich has called for Israel to launch a Gaza-style military campaign in Judea and Samaria and dismantle the Palestinian Authority, laying out a comprehensive security agenda for the next government one month before Israelis go to the polls.
Smotrich, chairman of the Religious Zionist Party, told Yedioth Ahronoth that Israel should expand its military approach in the territory from counterterrorism operations to a broader campaign aimed at eliminating terrorist infrastructure, seizing weapons and preventing armed groups from rebuilding.
“We need to go to war in Judea and Samaria. Do there what we did in Gaza,” Smotrich said.
He argued that the Palestinian Authority should be dismantled, describing it as a terrorist entity, and said the IDF should be instructed to ensure there are no terrorists, weapons, tunnels or other terrorist infrastructure remaining in the territory.
AFSI Insight
Smotrich’s call for a decisive campaign against terrorism in Judea and Samaria highlights what AFSI has long warned: Israel cannot achieve lasting security while terrorist infrastructure and a hostile Palestinian Authority remain entrenched in the heartland of Israel. AFSI supports dismantling the terrorist infrastructure threatening Jewish communities and believes Israel must move beyond temporary “mowing the grass” operations toward firm security measures and the assertion of Jewish sovereignty in Judea and Samaria.