Far-right minister calls for categorizing hostages as ‘prisoners of war,’ so that defeating Hamas can come first

Heritage Minister Amichay Eliyahu suggests that Israel should define the 50 remaining Gaza hostages as “prisoners” rather than hostages, which would allow for their release to be delayed until “victory” has been achieved over Hamas.

“The hostages should be defined as prisoners of war. Prisoners of war are only dealt with at the end of the victory,” the ultranationalist Otzma Yehudit minister tells Radio Kol Chai. “First, Hamas should be defeated.”

He laments that, in his eyes, the government is “confused” about its strategy in Gaza, and says that this has led to the hostages being “stuck” for longer than they would have been otherwise.

“Many people prioritize the hostages over victory — this is a mistake,” Eliyahu continues. “I’m calling to release the prisoners of war after the defeat [of Hamas], not before.”

The far-right lawmaker also called for Israel to apply sovereignty to the Gaza Strip, claiming that doing so “would be good for both Jews and Arabs.”

“Gaza should be Jewish, and then the Arabs will be better off too,” he said.

Eliyahu has drawn outrage for other comments on Gaza in the past.