Netanyahu Seriously Considered Allowing Rabbis to Pray Inside Gaza but Declined

Israeli Minister of Settlement Orit Struck revealed that about two weeks ago she submitted a request to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on behalf of 20 senior Religious Zionist rabbis to hold a prayer on the 8th of Elul inside the Gaza Strip. The request was seriously considered by Netanyahu but ultimately rejected. Struck disclosed this during a prayer and fasting event near Gaza commemorating 21 years since the burning of synagogues in the Gush Katif settlement bloc.

Struck read from the rabbis' letter explaining the significance of the 8th of Elul as a day of prayer and fasting, chosen not to mark the uprooting of settlements but to emphasize that Gaza belongs to Israel. Other speakers at the event included Rabbis Yaakov Medan and Yosef Alnakawa, and Avital Reichenk from the "Remember and Return" movement. The event was attended by dozens commemorating the historic day.

Struck emphasized that Gaza remains part of the Jewish people’s land and expressed determination to rebuild Gaza for the true heirs of Israel. She also highlighted a broader national return to areas evacuated in the past, citing ongoing efforts to reestablish settlements in northern Samaria and promising similar initiatives in Gaza.

Earlier in 2023, MK Limor Son Har-Melech led a legislative effort to amend the Disengagement Law concerning northern Samaria, which resulted in the return of settlements like Homesh and Shannur. She now seeks to apply the same legal principles to Gaza, aiming to remove all restrictions on Israeli movement and presence there since 2005.

This revelation comes amid political tensions within the coalition over Gaza’s future. Recently, Ministers Bezalel Smotrich and Orit Struck urgently demanded Netanyahu convene the Security Cabinet after a peace council document was reportedly altered significantly from the version presented to ministers during cabinet discussions.