Speaking at Katif Conference, FM Smotrich says Oct 7 'massacre would not have happened' if there had been Jewish settlement in Gaza

Finance minister speaks at conference commemorating former Gaza settlement

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Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich participated in the 10th annual Katif Conference for National Responsibility on Monday, where he said that the disengagement in 2005 is what led to the Oct. 7 Hamas massacres.

“Had there been Jewish settlement in Gush Katif, the massacre would not have happened,” Smotrich told Israel Hayom political correspondent Amir Ettinger.

“Hamas would not have taken over Gaza and turned it into a giant terror monster. We have to say thank you to the pioneers who held out there and constituted the security belt of Sderot and the surrounding communities and kibbutzim,” Smotrich claimed.

The minister argued that “settlement in the Gaza Strip will restore security to [Kibbutz] Be’eri,” saying Israel need to “correct mistakes.”

Smotrich and his Religious Zionism party, ran on a platform of strengthening the settlement movement, along with the Jewish Power party led by National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir, who did not speak at the conference.

Former Israeli Minister of Education Rabbi Yitzhak Levy, who chairs the Gush Katif Heritage Center, believes that Gaza is part of the Land of Israel.

“What is today called the country of Gaza is definitely a part of the land of Israel,” Levy stated, saying that the question of Gaza “is at the heart of the discourse in Israel. Who will rule there?”

During his speech, Smotrich also blamed international focus on humanitarian aid to Gaza as part of the reason the war has dragged on for ten months. He argued that Israel should control distribution of humanitarian aid in order to prevent Hamas from stealing it.

“It is impossible to destroy Hamas militarily and civilly without controlling humanitarian aid,” Smotrich stated.

“I have one main disagreement with the army and with the defense minister, and on this issue I don't know whether the prime minister does not want it or fails to enforce it, and that is accepting responsibility for the civil-humanitarian effort right now, during the war.”

“By the way, no one today talks about education or welfare, but the fact that Hamas is taking over the aid today is its fuel, its oxygen, it's the main prolonger of the war,” Smotrich said.

“If we had already accepted responsibility for the humanitarian effort six months ago…” he began saying before commenting: “They [COGAT] bring in assistance because there is no choice. It is impossible in today's global reality to wage war.”

Smotrich also argued that Israel is justified in withholding humanitarian aid until the hostages are released but acknowledged that doing so would jeopardize international support for its war effort.

“No one will let us starve to death 2 million civilians, even though it may be just and moral until we return our abductees, humanitarian for humanitarian, it’s morally correct – there is nothing to do today in this space, we need international legitimacy for this war.”

However, Smotrich said he believes the current war focus should be on goals that have a consensus in Israel: The destruction of Hamas and the return of the hostages.

Regarding a hostage deal, Smotrich said he is opposed to a deal that only returns part of the hostages.

“We all want to return the hostages,” he stated. “This deal returns only a few hostages and sentences the majority, so it is unjust and immoral, and it endangers the security of the state.”