Pictures of Israeli construction projects in the destroyed Gaza Strip, published by real estate developer Harry Zahav, sparked strong reactions, as they constitute a provocation at this stage, by confirming the presence of a desire among some Israelis to rebuild settlements in the Strip.
With this introduction, Liberation newspaper opened a report written by Jacques Bizet, in which he expressed the condemnation of some Internet users for publishing pictures showing Israeli construction projects in the now destroyed Palestinian territories, at a time when the occupation army continues its ground attack on the Gaza Strip.
A photo on December 13 showed sketches of homes lined up on the rubble of Gaza, along with a message in Hebrew saying, “We, the Golden Mountain Company, are working to pave the way for the return to Gush Katif. A number of our employees have begun work on reclamation work, removing “We hope that all the kidnapped people will return home safely in the near future, that our soldiers will return home, and that we can begin construction throughout the Gush Katif area,” a group of settlements evacuated in 2005 during the disengagement plan from the Gaza Strip.
New buildings, bunkers and hospitals
The names of future settlements also appear in this illustration. Such as: Ma’ale Atzmona, Oren, and Neve Katif, which refer to former settlements in the Gaza Strip. There are also other names with them in a second publication dating back to December 11, which shows a map in Hebrew of these settlements in the Gaza Strip.
These pictures are real – as the newspaper says – and they were published on Harry Zahav’s Instagram account, which has posted, since October 7, a number of pictures and video clips highlighting the military commitment of the company’s reserve employees, from which a post was deleted last Sunday. , shows a group of soldiers in the Gaza Strip holding a sign with her name, announcing that “Here the new Maale Atzmona settlement will be built.”
The newspaper wondered about the importance of these publications at a time when the future of Gaza remains unresolved, especially since the return of Israeli settlers is not officially envisaged, even though the Israeli-Palestinian information website “Mecomit” revealed a memorandum from the Israeli Ministry of Intelligence, talking about the forced displacement of civilians from Gaza to Egypt, but Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office downplayed its importance, describing it as a hypothetical exercise.
Aspirations to restore Gaza
For these reasons, the newspaper saw that the projects presented by promoter Harry Zahav at this stage are merely provocative, even though they reflect the aspirations of some Israelis to regain Gaza. Indeed, the promoter admitted to the newspaper’s news verification section that the initiative has nothing to do with a “commercial campaign,” and that it is merely a “parody.” “.
However, the director who was contacted defended an “awareness” measure in order to “open a discussion,” and stressed that after the October 7 attack, it appeared that resuming control over Gaza, the concentration of Israelis, and the departure of the Palestinian population to neighboring Arab countries “is the solution.” “The only one for lasting peace.”
Israeli human rights activist Itay Epstein, former director of the Israeli branch of Amnesty International, spoke of a “media stunt,” but added that this provocation “reflects a deep feeling in favor of seizing land and settlement at the expense of the Palestinians,” noting that a conference was held this month with the aim of “practically preparing for the installation.” In Gaza” in Givat Washington.
According to the “Dvar Hayom” news website, this meeting, which was organized by 15 organizations and included about 150 participants, considered that the ongoing war was a historic opportunity for the Israelis to return to stability in the Gaza Strip. Journalist David Tversky, who attended the meeting, said that “most of them were evacuated from Gush Katif and their families,” he stressed that they are seeking to mobilize the support of Israeli public opinion and exert pressure on political leaders, but the government of Benjamin Netanyahu and international public opinion officially oppose the re-settlement in the Gaza territories.
