A large right-wing, ultranationalist demonstration is being organized for next week in Jerusalem to call for the expulsion of Palestinians from Gaza and the construction of Jewish settlements in the territory.
Titled “Occupation, expulsion and settlement,” the demonstration is being organized by the Nachala settlement group and other right-wing organizations that have been advocating for full Israeli occupation and settlement of Gaza since the early months of the war following the October 7 atrocities.
Nachala, which has long supported and advanced the construction of illegal settlement outposts in the West Bank, has held several events during the war to promote renewed Jewish settlement in Gaza, a policy that has been backed by several cabinet ministers, including Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich.
Ultranationalist activists, apparently backed by Nachala, also tried to break into Gaza on several occasions during the war to establish new Jewish settlements in the territory but were ultimately removed by the army.
Thursday’s demonstration, to be held at the capital’s Paris Square, is being staged just ahead of the final round of hostage-prisoner releases between Israel and Hamas, which will complete the first phase of the broader ceasefire agreement between the two parties.
Nachala and its leader, Daniella Weiss, strongly opposed the ceasefire agreement and the withdrawals of IDF troops from Gaza, which were a key part of the deal.
The organization, along with other ultranationalist groups, has campaigned relentlessly since the agreement took effect in January not to implement the second stage of the ceasefire deal, which would see all IDF forces leave Gaza and the return of all remaining living hostages.
Instead, Nachala has called for the resumption of fighting against Hamas, the construction of Jewish settlements in Gaza, and the expulsion of the Palestinian population from the territory.
“Ahead of the end of the [hostage-prisoner release] deal and the renewal of fighting, the organizers are emphasizing: this time will be decisive – no to stopping the war, occupy, expel, settle,” Nachala said on Thursday in announcing the coming demonstration.
According to the group, an “operations room” has been established to coordinate organizational activities for the demonstration, which includes making large numbers of telephone calls to drum up awareness and participation for the event.
Some 16,000 fliers have already been distributed, Nachala said, with teams of volunteers posting them around the country, while over 50 “transport coordinators” are helping to organize transportation to the demonstration, the group added.
Nachala held an organizational conference to plan the demonstration last week in the Kiryat Arba settlement.
Ultranationalist groups began calling for rebuilding Jewish settlements in Gaza not long after the October 7 invasion and atrocities and the subsequent war that ensued.
Nachala staged a large rally in Jerusalem in January last year to build political and public support for the reconstruction of Jewish settlements in Gaza, with numerous cabinet ministers backing their call.
At the conference, then-national security minister Itamar Ben Gvir endorsed a policy of “encouraging voluntary emigration,” while current Communications Minister Shlomo Karhi of Likud advocated for the coercive resettlement of the Gazan population.
During another conference later that year overlooking the Gaza Strip, Ben Gvir, Smotrich, and Likud minister May Golan made similar comments, while Weiss said that the Palestinians have “lost their right” to live in Gaza following the October 7 massacres.
Explicit calls by ultranationalist groups for the “expulsion” of Palestinians from Gaza have become an increasingly explicit and prominent feature of their agenda following US President Donald Trump’s insistence at the end of January that the Palestinian population of the territory be permanently resettled outside of Gaza.