- Israel's defense minister urged Turkey to take Hamas members from Gaza, proposing relocation to Antalya amid calls to remove Gaza's population.
- Katz framed the plan as voluntary and tied it to security goals, saying Israel must prevent a repeat of the October 7 attack.
- Comments escalated tensions with Turkey, which hosts Hamas leaders; the countries traded accusations, including an Interpol alert request and genocide claims.
Israel’s defence minister suggested on Thursday that Turkey take in Hamas members from Gaza, as he called for the full-scale removal of the war-torn territory’s two million people.
The comments by Israel Katz, who is known for his outspoken remarks, came after an increase in tensions between Turkey and Israel.
“Israel will continue to act to complete its security objectives and ensure that the threat of October 7 cannot return,” Katz wrote on X, referring to Hamas’s bloody 2023 attack on Israel, which sparked the war in Gaza.
Katz added that if Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan “wants to help his brothers in creed and path in Gaza — let him invite them to move to Antalya. A lot of space has opened up there in the absence of Israeli tourists”.
Antalya, a beach town at the heart of Turkey’s tourism industry, was a top destination for Israelis before relations deteriorated.
Turkey was the first Muslim-majority nation to recognise Israel but Erdogan is a fierce critic and has allowed Hamas leaders in Istanbul.
In August, Israel bombed an air base in northern Syria and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accused Turkey of looking to establish a military presence there.
Turkey in turn said it had sought an Interpol alert for Netanyahu, accusing him of “genocide”.
On Wednesday, Katz said 70 percent of Gaza had already been emptied of its population and that the Israeli military was ready to “finish the job so that we can also implement the migration plan”.
Earlier this month, he said Israel was prepared to remove Palestinians from Gaza by land and sea but was waiting for a decision from the United States, which he said was discussing where the two million people would go.
Katz had described the migration plan as voluntary.
