'Bomb the food stores in Gaza,' Israeli minister calls for starvation of Palestinians

Israeli Heritage Minister Amichai Eliyahu late on Monday called for the bombing of Gaza food warehouses and for starving Palestinians in Gaza, in the latest Israeli inflammatory statements against Gaza which endures ongoing Israeli genocide.

"There is no problem in bombing Hamas' food reserves," the extremist minister told the Israeli Channel 7 during an interview.

"They need to starve. If there are civilians who fear for their lives, they should go through the emigration plan," he also said.

"The moment it becomes hard for them, it will also be hard for Hamas. There is no problem bombing Hamas's fuel and food reserves," Eliyahu added, who belongs to the extremist Jewish Strength (Otzma Yehudit) party of hardline National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir.

Eliyahu went on to say that entering aid into Gaza has no connection with "the Jewish ethics," claiming that they must not "feed those who fight us."

"When life becomes difficult for civilians, it will be too for Hamas," he also said.

In November 2023, Eliyahu, who has extremist rhetoric against Palestinians, said dropping a "nuclear bomb" on the Gaza Strip is "an option."

On Monday, Ben-Gvir reaffirmed his insistence on starving Palestinians in Gaza as part of the ongoing genocidal war.

According to Israel's Channel 14, Ben-Gvir said "the only aid that should enter Gaza is for the purpose of voluntary migration," a clear expression of a deportation agenda aimed at emptying the enclave of its indigenous population under the cover of the genocidal war.

US President Donald Trump has repeatedly called to "take over" Gaza and resettle its population to develop it into a tourist destination. His plan was rejected by the Arab world and many other nations, who say it amounts to ethnic cleansing.

Israeli estimates suggest that 59 captives remain in Gaza, with 24 believed alive. In contrast, more than 9,500 Palestinians remain imprisoned in Israel under harsh conditions, including reports of torture, starvation and medical neglect, according to Palestinian and Israeli rights organizations.

More than 52,500 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza in a brutal Israeli onslaught since October 2023, most of them women and children.

The International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants in November for Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.

Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war on the enclave.