Israel: Government Reportedly Considering Deporting Families Of Terrorists To Gaza

Israel's Prime Minister Naftali Bennett reportedly told his government to look into the option of demolishing the homes of Arab-Israeli terrorists and deporting families of terrorists to Gaza.

Justice Minister Gideon Sa'ar recommended demolishing the homes of Arab-Israeli terrorists during a security cabinet meeting on Sunday. 

Sa'ar also proposed deporting the families of terrorists from the West Bank to the Gaza Strip, Army Radio reported. 

Members of the cabinet expressed opposition to the recommendation that the Justice Minister claims is "necessary."

Israel's Finance Minister Avigdor Lieberman told Army Radio on Monday that there was "no doubt" that his center-right Yisrael Beiteinu party supports deporting Palestinians and demolishing homes. 

"In our eyes, they need to be deported," he said, according to The Jerusalem Post. "I still remember when we deported people to Lebanon. I don't know if it's realistic. There needs to also be a vision. Not everything is legislation."

Bills to deport the families of Palestinian terrorists have been considered but never approved. One such bill was proposed in 2018 by the Bayit Yehudi Party - headed by Bennett at the time - and passed a preliminary reading. However, the bill failed to progress due to elections being called shortly after. 

In December, a similar bill was proposed by former prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu's Likud party but fell in parliament as Yamina and New Hope opposed it.