On Wednesday evening, an event marking the 20th anniversary of the expulsion from Gush Katif was held by members of the settlement bloc, the Nachalah setters movement, bereaved families and hostages, and settlement organizations from across Israel. 

The event started with a march from the train station in Sderot to the Assaf Siboni lookout, about one kilometer from Beit Hanoun in the Gaza Strip. 

The march was primarily organized by the Nachalah movement, which is seeking to reestablish settlement in Gaza after the war, to undo what it sees as the injustice of the disengagement and withdrawal from Gush Katif 20 years ago. 

The march was held in parallel with an official request submitted to Defense Minister Israel Katz, in which members of Nachalah and other settlement groups requested a preliminary tour of parts of Gaza in preparation for Jewish settlement there. 

"Twenty years ago, the State of Israel expelled its citizens from Gush Katif. Today, after the heavy price we paid, it's time to make amends. The real victory will be in rebuilding where the murderers came from," said a letter signed by several Cabinet ministers, coalition MKs, and heads of settlement groups. 

"This is an accessible, safe, and familiar area to the IDF, which currently has no security restrictions. We ask that a coordinated civilian tour be approved, which will lead to the opening of a new chapter of repair and construction," the letter to Katz stated. 

With the 20th anniversary of the Gush Katif expulsion, as well as the approaching end of the Gaza war, settler groups in Israel, including members of the coalition government, have begun renewed calls to restore Jewish settlement in Gaza, despite repeated statements by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that this is not part of the Israeli government's plan for the post-war period. 

However, in recent days, various reports in Hebrew media have claimed that Israel is ready to threaten Hamas with annexation of parts of Gaza, if the terror group harms any of the remaining hostages. Last year, several members of Likud urged Netanyahu to annex parts of Gaza after six Israeli hostages were executed by the terror group.  

Among those participating in the march were people expelled from the Gush Katif settlements, many waiving the orange flags associated with those who opposed the disengagement and the expulsion of Gush Katif. Communications Minister Shlomo Karhi (Likud) and MK Limor Son Har Melech (Jewish Power) also participated in the march on Wednesday evening. 

Minister Karhi has called for Israel to annex all of the Gaza Strip, and he did so again in a video released on social media during the march. 

"We want all of the Gaza Strip," Karhi said in the video. "Now our soldiers are there, conquering the territory, and Jewish settlement is a must. That's the reality." 

Finance Minister and Religious Zionism head Bezalel Smotrich issued a similar statement earlier this week in a speech at the Gush Katif museum. 

"We didn't sacrifice all this to transfer Gaza from one Arab to another Arab. Gaza is an inseparable part of the land of Israel," Smotrich stated. "I don't want to go back to Gush Katif — it's too small. It needs to be much bigger. Gaza today allows us to think a little bigger." 

While these statements come at a time when an increasing number of Israelis want to see an end to the war, a new poll done by Israel Hayom indicates that an increasing number of Israelis also support future Jewish settlement in the Gaza Strip. 

The report by Israel Hayom found that many Israelis believe there is a direct connection between the disengagement and the Oct. 7 massacre. 

Asked whether Israel made a mistake in carrying out the disengagement, 76% of respondents agreed that it had. Many of those surveyed also stated that the Oct. 7 massacre and the Iron Swords War changed their view of the disengagement, with 70% saying this was true for them. 

In a similar vein, asked whether it would be possible to conduct a similar disengagement from the territories of Judea and Samaria, 64% responded that it would not be possible. 

Regarding resettlement of the Gaza Strip after the war, 52% of respondents said they supported resettlement. 

This allisreal.com report was republished with permission from All Israel News.