"We will eliminate this evil... we will eliminate its inhabitants... Gaza will become entirely Jewish," Eliyahu, a member of the far-right Jewish Power party led by National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, said in an interview with local radio station Kol Barma.
These statements come as Israel continues its war on the Gaza Strip since October 7, 2023, resulting in more than 202,000 deaths and injuries, the majority of whom are children and women, in addition to thousands of missing persons and hundreds of thousands of displaced persons, amid a stifling blockade and worsening famine.
"We don't need to deal with hunger in Gaza," Eliyahu said, referring to international criticism of Israel for blocking humanitarian aid and closing the crossings for more than 140 days.
The government media office in Gaza warned last Sunday that the Strip was on the brink of "mass death" due to the ongoing blockade and the denial of aid entry, despite international appeals and court orders from the International Court of Justice demanding that Israel halt its operations.
The Israeli minister addressed the internal criticism directed at Netanyahu's government, saying, "These sick people, like (leader of the opposition Democratic Party) Yair Golan and (former Prime Minister Ehud) Olmert, have lost their identity and their support for the people of Israel."
In contrast, Gilad Kariv, a member of parliament for the opposition Democratic Party, said that "Eliyahu's continued tenure is a disgrace to Israel and the entire Jewish people." He added via the X platform, "He is a violent and extremist nationalist who promotes war crimes and violates not only international law, but also the laws of Israel."
Kariv asserted that "Netanyahu's allowing his government ministers to express themselves in this manner is further evidence of his loss of reason, political cowardice, and impotence." He continued, "Netanyahu and his extremist partners are endangering Israel."
Eliyahu had previously called for dropping a nuclear bomb on Gaza, in statements that sparked widespread condemnation. His party also calls for reoccupying the Strip, establishing settlements on its territory, and displacing its Palestinian population.
For decades, Israel has occupied Palestine and territories in Syria and Lebanon, refusing to withdraw from them and establish an independent Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital, along the pre-1967 borders.
