In November 2023, one month after Hamas rampaged across southern Israel, murdering over 1,200 Israelis while injuring, raping, and maiming many others, I wrote (“Victory is an opportunity for Israel in the midst of crisis” November, 19, 2023) a bold vision of how to ensure that such a massacre would never happen again.
In the days after the attack, my team at the Intelligence Ministry and I looked at all the possible options to ensure Gaza would never be a threat to Israel again.
I noted that disengagement, enrichment, conflict management, and building high walls in the hope of keeping the Hamas monsters out of Israel have all failed.
My suggestion was “to promote the voluntary resettlement of Palestinians in Gaza, for humanitarian reasons, outside of the Strip.”
At first, this idea was met with incredulity or a lack of imagination by many in Israel and around the world, including those in decision-making positions.
Nevertheless, we persisted in pushing the concept at the highest levels and even reached out to certain countries to see if they would be interested in the resettlement of Gazans, some of whom responded favorably.
Over the ensuing months, we pushed it to all levels and meetings with the knowledge that it was the only possible solution to the problem on our southern border.
As the famed English writer and futurist Arthur C. Clarke once wrote: “New ideas pass through three periods: 1) It can’t be done. 2) It probably can be done, but it’s not worth doing. 3) I knew it was a good idea all along!”
Thankfully, we have now arrived at the last stage.
At his press conference with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, US President Donald Trump said the Palestinians have “no alternative” but to leave Gaza.
“If we could find the right piece of land, or numerous pieces of land, and build them some really nice places with plenty of money in the area, I think that would be a lot better than going back to Gaza,” President Trump said.
This vision by President Trump, which I first suggested in the early stages of the conflict, is far from flawless and does come with its challenges and limitations.
Nonetheless, I am delighted to hear that the leader of the free world has embraced our initiative and publicly backed it. From my discussions all those months ago, I am confident that many more will lend their support as well, even if not at first publicly.
As the saying goes, seeking perfection is often the enemy of progress. While this plan isn’t perfect, it is the only one that can achieve all of our objectives.
We need to bring all of the hostages home and end the military and governing rule of Hamas and other terrorist groups.
We can not let the Palestinian Authority take over Gaza because we have seen the ineffectiveness of this policy in the past when its leaders were thrown off tall buildings by Hamas.
Moreover, the behavior of the Palestinian Authority, lauding the October 7 massacre, paying stipends to those involved, and still inciting and seeking the end of the Jewish state should be enough to ensure that it is seen as part of the problem and not part of the solution.
After October 7, it's time to find new solutions
We can not continually look at the same problem and seek the same solution, expecting different results.
We looked at all possible alternatives, and each one led us to a dead end or back to the same problem. How much more blood must be shed until we finally understand that there is no other solution to our conflict in Gaza?
It is also far clearer, even than it was back when I penned the first op-ed, that many Gazans want to leave, especially the younger sections of the population.
Gazans still remain the one population on earth completely forbidden by the international community from leaving a war zone and seeking refuge elsewhere.
This unique and seemingly nonsensical anomaly aptly demonstrates that there is, and has been, a political aspect to this refusal, showing the collusion of many nations, global multilateral institutions, and international NGOs in the continued suffering of ordinary Gazans who they purport to support.
What is acceptable in every other conflict in modern history is somehow unacceptable for Gaza. We have to apply the very same standards we use in other conflicts.
'A win-win solution'
This is an opportunity for those who say they back the Palestinian people to show these are not just empty words.
Instead of trying to rebuild Gaza at the cost of billions of dollars, the international community can assist in the costs of resettlement, helping the people of Gaza build new lives in their new host countries.
As I wrote 14 months ago, “It could be a win-win solution: a win for those civilians of Gaza who seek a better life and a win for Israel after this devastating tragedy.”
The voluntary resettlement of Gazans outside of the enclave is an idea whose time has finally come.
It is realistic; it offers the only long-term potential security for the State of Israel, and it can ensure after such a devastating war that, there will finally be peace and an end to this conflict.
The writer is the innovation, science, and technology minister, a member of the security cabinet, and a former intelligence minister.