Jerusalem24– The Jerusalem Post – Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett instructed his government on Monday to examine the options for demolishing the homes of Palestinian citizens of Israel whose relatives have committed attacks against Israelis, according to The Jerusalem Post.
The punitive measure is systematically used against Palestinian families in the West Bank and East Jerusalem but has never yet been applied to Palestinians holding Israeli citizenship within the Green Line.
A proposal to deport families of suspected terrorists from the West Bank to Gaza is also under examination.
Bills to deport the families of Palestinian terrorists have been considered several times in recent years, but they have not been approved. A bill that was proposed in 2018 by the Bayit Yehudi Party, which was then led by Bennett, passed a preliminary reading but failed to progress further when elections were called shortly thereafter.
Former attorney-general Avichai Mandelblit expressed opposition to attempts to pass such bills, warning that they harmed civilians who did not pose a security risk.
The two options are legally complicated, and members of the security establishment have expressed opposition to the recommendations.
However, Finance Minister Avigdor Liberman on Monday told Army Radio there was no doubt his party supports deporting Palestinians and demolishing homes within the Green Line.
“In our eyes, they need to be deported,” he said. “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.”
In 1992, more than 400 Palestinians were deported to southern Lebanon for at least a year after several members of the security forces were killed by Palestinians.
