Israeli minister: Gaza ‘must be smaller at the end of the war’

‘Whoever starts a war against Israel must lose territory,’ said Minister Gideon Sa’ar

An Israeli army soldier directs an approaching Puma armored personnel carrier moving near the Gaza border in southern Israel on Oct. 14, 2023. Photo by Aris Messinis/AFP via Getty Images

By Lauren Markoe October 14, 2023

Gaza “must be smaller at the end of the war,” Israeli Minister Gideon Sa’ar said in an interview Saturday, according to Ha’aretz.

“We must make the end of our campaign clear to everyone around us,” he told Israeli Channel 12 News. “Whoever starts a war against Israel must lose territory.”

Israel is preparing for a ground war in Gaza in retaliation for Hamas’ attacks on the country a week ago.

Sa’ar is one of five opposition lawmakers sworn into Israel’s cabinet Thursday to bring those with more experience leading during wartime into Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government. Sa’ar, a former justice and interior minister and deputy prime minister, spent most of his political career in Netanyahu’s Likud party, but in 2020 left to form his New Hope party.

Sa’ar also told the news channel that Israel is at war with Iran and that it must firstly destroy Hamas’ military capabilities. “They do have to pay the price of loss,” he said.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Thursday that there’s no “direct evidence” that Iran is behind Hamas’ attack on Israel but also noted a longstanding “complicity” between the two.

More than 1,200 Israelis were killed in the attack, according to Israeli government sources. Israeli forces have since killed more than 1,9oo Palestinians, according to Palestinian sources.

Israeli forces occupied Gaza from 1967 until 2005 and Hamas has ruled the 37-mile-long strip of land along the Mediterranean since 2007.

Portions of this article originally appeared on Haaretz.com. To get Haaretz’s Daily Brief newsletter delivered to your inbox, click here.

Lauren Markoe is news editor of the Forward. A Bronx native, she reported for The Patriot Ledger, several McClatchy newspapers in the South, and Religion News Service, where she was also managing editor. She also produced live radio shows at WAMU in Washington, D.C., where she lives.

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