Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar said on Wednesday that Israel was “not planning to expel or to deport anyone from the Gaza Strip” during a visit to Slovenia for the opening of an Israeli embassy.
Saar said Palestinians who wished to leave Gaza voluntarily would be free to do so if another country was willing to accept them.
“If someone wants to leave Gaza from his own will, and there is a country which is ready to accept him, as it happens from any conflict area in the world, we will not oppose that,” he said.
Several members of the Israeli cabinet have spoken publicly about plans to relocate all two million Palestinians from the war-ravaged Gaza Strip. However, they have largely presented the proposal as voluntary, arguing that Palestinians want to leave but are being prevented from doing so by Hamas.
Saar made the remarks at a press conference in Ljubljana ahead of the opening of Israel’s embassy in Slovenia, as the country seeks to reset diplomatic ties with Israel under nationalist Prime Minister Janez Jansa.
He thanked Slovenia for its “friendship” and for “standing with Israel when it matters”.
“An embassy is more than a flag in the building. It is an investment in a relationship and a commitment to its future. And that is exactly what we are planning to do together,” Saar said.
“Israel remembers its friends. As you have stood with us, we will stand with you,” he added.
The opening of the Israeli embassy in Ljubljana marks a significant departure from the policies of Slovenia’s previous centre-left government, which had been among the European Union’s most vocal critics of Israel’s military offensive in Gaza.
The development comes amid continued international scrutiny of Israel’s policies towards Gaza and growing debate over the future of the territory’s Palestinian population.
AFP
