Israeli ministers, lawmakers join thousands in push to reestablish illegal Gaza settlements

Israeli ministers and lawmakers joined thousands of Israeli occupiers in a vehicle convoy toward the Gaza border Sunday, demanding the reestablishment of illegal Israeli settlements in the Palestinian enclave, according to Israel’s Channel 7.

The convoy, led by the Nachala Settlement Movement alongside other right-wing groups, was heading to a gathering point in northern Gaza before a rally near the enclave’s northern border.

Organizers are pressing the Israeli government to restore settlements in Gaza, arguing in a message to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that a long-term security solution requires a settlement presence there.

Nachala leader Daniella Weiss, who joined the convoy, said thousands were arriving with housing equipment and preparing to reestablish a presence at Nisanit, an Israeli settlement in the northern Gaza Strip that was dismantled and evacuated in August 2005, as well as elsewhere in the enclave.

Israel evacuated its illegal settlements in Gaza in 2005 under a unilateral disengagement plan.

Since October 2023, Israeli attacks on Gaza have killed nearly 74,000 Palestinians and wounded around 175,000, according to figures from Gaza health authorities. The attacks continue despite a US-sponsored ceasefire last year.