Israel has no plans ‘to expel or to deport’ Palestinians from Gaza, Sa’ar says

Speaking at embassy opening in Slovenia, FM says those who want to leave war-torn Strip can, but no one will be forced out

By Lazar Berman
  • Lazar Berman is The Times of Israel's diplomatic reporter
 10 September 2026, 12:12 am
Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar speaks during a joint press conference with Slovenia’s foreign minister (not pictured) prior to the opening of Israel’s embassy in Slovenia, in Ljubljana on September 9, 2026. (Martin Metelko/AFP)

Israel is not planning to expel or deport any Palestinians from the Gaza Strip by force, Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar said on Wednesday, after a fellow government member, National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir, recently announced his plan to encourage the departure of the vast majority of the war-torn enclave’s population.

“We are not planning to expel or to deport anyone from [the] Gaza Strip,” Sa’ar declared during a press conference in Ljubljana, where he was attending the opening of an Israeli embassy in Slovenia.

“If someone wants to immigrate of his own will, and there is a country which is ready to accept him,” Sa’ar continued, “as it happens from any conflict area in the world, we will not oppose that.”

“But we will not force anyone against his will,” he insisted.

His remarks appeared intended to counterbalance recent attempts by several senior members of government, including Ben Gvir and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, to push Israel to encourage Gazans to leave the territory.

Last week, Defense Minister Israel Katz said plans to facilitate the mass emigration of Palestinians from Gaza remained under discussion and were merely “frozen” by US President Donald Trump, not taken off the table entirely.

“There is no real solution for Gaza in the end without this migration,” Katz said.

A day later, Ben Gvir, the leader of the ultranationalist Otzma Yehudit party, unveiled a plan he said was aimed at removing the vast majority of Gaza’s Palestinian population from the territory through what he termed “voluntary emigration,” including by establishing a dedicated government ministry.

The plan seeks the removal of 250,000 Gazans in its first year, 1.11 million within three years and 1.86 million within seven years. Gaza’s population is estimated at some 2.3 million.

“Instead of illusions of peace now, we need actions of emigration now,” Ben Gvir said. “Instead of [Gazans] digging tunnels, it’s time to pack suitcases.”

The first suggestion of encouraging “voluntary emigration” from Gaza came from Trump in February 2025, when he suggested relocating its residents.

The possibility sparked strong pushback, including from Egypt, and was condemned by Palestinians themselves. Trump later abandoned the proposal amid the international opposition and a lack of willing destination countries.

Trump also spoke at one time of developing the coastal territory, devastated by the two-year war between Israel and Hamas, into a luxury resort destination.

In his October 2025 Gaza peace plan, Trump appeared to walk away from it entirely, pledging instead to “encourage people to stay and offer them the opportunity to build a better Gaza.”

In June, Israeli security officials were reported to be seeking to revive the moribund plan and to have rebranded it in an effort to soften international opposition.

People walk past tents sheltering displaced Palestinians amid the ruins of buildings destroyed by Israeli airstrikes during the war with Hamas, in Gaza City, August 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Jehad Alshrafi)

The war has already internally displaced the vast majority of Gaza’s people following the October 7 Hamas attack on southern Israel, in which some 1,200 people were killed and 251 were taken hostage.

Israel’s subsequent offensive has killed over 73,400 people in Gaza, including more than 1,330 since the October 2025 ceasefire, according to the Hamas-run health ministry in the enclave, although the toll does not differentiate between combatants and civilians.

The Israel Defense Forces believes that Hamas’s overall toll is largely accurate, with IDF officials estimating that two to three civilians were killed for every dead terror operative.

While the October 2025 US-backed ceasefire halted major fighting in the shattered territory, it hasn’t ended strikes by the IDF, which the military says are meant to thwart attacks by Gaza terrorists.

Gaza remains bisected into Israeli- and Hamas-controlled areas, and talks to bring about Hamas’s disarmament and the territory’s reconstruction have made only limited progress.

Ariela Karmel contributed to this report.

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