An Israeli minister from the Otzma Yehudit political party says one of Israel’s options in the war in Gaza is to drop a nuclear bomb on the strip, The Times of Israel reported on 5 November.
Asked in an interview with Radio Kol Berama whether an atomic bomb should be dropped on the enclave, Heritage Minister Amichai Eliyahu says “this is one of the possibilities.”
Eliyahu, of Itamar Ben Gvir’s Jewish supremacist political party, stated further that “there is no such thing as uninvolved civilians in Gaza,” and that, therefore, no humanitarian aid should be allowed into the besieged enclave.
He also expressed his support for depopulating Gaza and reconquering it to reestablish Jewish settlements there. Regarding the Palestinian population, he says: “They can go to Ireland or deserts, the monsters in Gaza should find a solution by themselves.”
He says anyone waving a Palestinian or Hamas flag “shouldn’t continue living on the face of the earth.”
Israeli Heritage Minister and member of the Otzma Yehudit Party Amichai Eliyahu says dropping an atomic bomb on Gaza is a possibility. These comments were made during an interview with Israeli Radio Kol Berama.
— The Cradle (@TheCradleMedia) November 5, 2023
He also said that:
○ "They can go to Ireland or deserts, the… pic.twitter.com/hGJA8UnI45
In response, Hamas issued statement saying, “The statements of one of the occupation ministers about the possibility of dropping a nuclear bomb on Gaza reflect the terrorism of the Israeli government against our people.”
Eliyahu is not part of the security cabinet that controls Israel’s military decision-making in the war against Hamas and the Palestinian resistance, meaning his comments may have little if any weight with Israel’s security establishment.
However, comments casting all Palestinians, including children, as deserving of death due to Hamas’ surprise attack on Israel on 7 October, in which 1,400 Israeli civilians and soldiers were killed, have become commonplace among Israeli politicians, celebrities, and journalists.
Some Israelis were killed by Hamas fighters during the 7 October attack, while others were killed by Israeli forces themselves, who wished to prevent Hamas from taking them as captives back to Gaza.
Israeli journalist Shimon Riklin stated that, “Gaza has to be wiped off from the face of the earth,” while asking, “Why exactly do we have an atomic bomb?”
Member of the Likud party and Knesset member Revital Gottlieb stated, “Bring down buildings!! Bomb without distinction!! Stop with this impotence. You have the ability. There is worldwide legitimacy! Flatten Gaza. Without mercy! This time, there is no room for mercy!”
“The world finally understands who the animals we are dealing with are… This allows the IDF to exact a much heavier price from Gaza. Not only from Hamas. Everyone who is celebrating now in Gaza – should cry. It’s that simple,” stated Ofer Hadad, a journalist and TV anchor.
“it’s an entire nation out there that is responsible. it’s not true this rhetoric about civilians not aware, not involved, it’s absolutely not true…” stated Israeli President Isaac Herzog.
“[I]f, in order to finally eliminate the military capabilities of Hamas, including [Hamas leaders] Sinwar and Deif, we need a million bodies, then let there be a million bodies,” stated journalist Roy Sharon.
“Erase Gaza, don’t leave a single person there,” stated Eyal Golan, a popular Israeli singer.
These attitudes, in part, explain the willingness of Israel’s military to carry out a bombing campaign in Gaza that has killed Palestinian civilians “on a mass scale,” according to Amnesty International, in what Holocaust scholar Raz Segal has called “A textbook case of genocide.”
Israel’s bombing campaign has killed over 9,500 Palestinians in less than four weeks, including 6,400 women and children.