At the conclusion of a meeting between Minister Bezalel Smotrich and Sderot Mayor Alon Davidi today (Monday), the former announced that the Defense Ministry’s Settlement Authority, led by him, has concluded staff work to establish three communities in the northern sector of the Gaza Strip, and that it is possible to begin executing the plan immediately upon receiving political approval from the Prime Minister.
“The Settlement Authority in the Defense Ministry, led by me, has completed the staff work, and we are ready to establish three communities immediately, the moment we get the green light from the Prime Minister. I call on the Prime Minister: grant the approval, let’s finish the mission and restore true security for the residents of the south,” Smotrich said.
He added that “the IDF is currently holding nearly 70% of the territory in the Gaza Strip. We have to complete the conquest of the remaining territory, defeat Hamas, and establish a strip of Jewish communities that will serve as a security belt for Sderot and the Gaza envelope communities. Wherever there is no settlement, there is no security. We are not returning to the pre-October 7th reality.”
AFSI Insight
This report denonstrates the strategic and ideological shift in Israel’s approach to Gaza, particularly focusing on sovereignty, long-term security control, and reestablishing Jewish presence in areas adjacent to or within the Strip.
Smotrich’s statement is part of a broader “post-Oslo” paradigm in which temporary military gains are not seen as sufficient and instead are framed as requiring a permanent Israeli presence on the ground. The proposal to establish “three communities in northern Gaza” is a concrete expression of this doctrine—linking “settlement” activity directly to national security rather than to traditional diplomatic frameworks.
Such initiatives are not isolated rhetoric but part of a consistent policy direction; rejecting the idea of territorial withdrawal, rejecting the viability of a Palestinian state in strategic border areas, and advancing “facts on the ground” to prevent future security threats. We pray that these proposed communities in northern Gaza will not be seen as symbolic. They will serve as practical security buffers intended to ensure long-term Israeli control and deterrence after the war.