From the Liveblog of
Monday, September 29, 2025
Likud MK says it’s in Israel’s interest to expel all Arabs from the West Bank
Add ToI as a Preferred Source on GoogleSam Sokol is a former political correspondent at The Times of Israel. He was previously a reporter for the Jerusalem Post, Jewish Telegraphic Agency and Haaretz. He is the author of "Putin’s Hybrid War and the Jews"
Likud MK Nissim Vaturi insists that it is in Israel’s interest to ensure that there are no Palestinians in the West Bank, echoing a previous call for expulsion from earlier this year.
Asked about a possible role for the Ramallah-based Palestinian Authority in governing Gaza following the war, the Likud backbencher tells the Knesset Channel that “Israel’s primary interest” is that “there will be no Arabs here at all.”
“If it were possible to deport them all, we would do it tomorrow morning,” he states.
Vaturi adds that he does not differentiate between terrorists and civilians in this regard, stating that the Arabs of the West Bank overwhelmingly supported Hamas’s October 7 attack on Israel and that “they will attack us as soon as they can.”
“Anyone who wants to murder Jews and that’s the goal of their life shouldn’t be here,” he insists, adding that he is not referring to all Arab Israelis, although there are Likud-supporting Arabs as well as “collaborators.”
Addressing an ultranationalist rally in Jerusalem in February, Vaturi called for the expulsion of all Palestinians from Gaza and the West Bank, stating: “We want to remove all the Arabs from Gaza. They should not be in Judea and Samaria either.”
Vaturi has a history of making controversial remarks, including calling to “burn” Gaza.
The Times of Israel Community.