Israeli minister warns: If Hamas doesn't disband within weeks 'IDF will do what the IDF knows how to do'

Israeli National Missions Minister Orit Strock said on Friday that Israel must go back to fighting in the Gaza Strip if the Hamas terrorist organization is not disarmed within weeks as part of phase two of the Trump plan.

In a Kan News interview on the radio program ‘This Morning,’ Strock emphasized, “They will be given a short time frame, a few weeks, I assume, after which the IDF will do what the IDF knows how to do, and this time without hostages.”

A member of the Religious Zionism party, Strock said that she and party chairman, Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, oppose any Trump plan for Gaza, saying they think it is “a mistake.” However, Strock emphasized that the agreement reflects international support for a possible return to military action.

“The best thing President Trump did in this agreement was secure an international agreement that Hamas should not be there and that Gaza must be completely demilitarized, and that is what we are pursuing. That is why it is good we reached phase two, and it will be implemented,” she said.

Strock added that, as an observer on the Cabinet, she bears responsibility for the decisions made there, despite her opposition to the Trump plan.

“Many times my remarks were taken into account, though not always. Even before October 7, I warned about what was going to happen, and unfortunately, not enough people listened to me. I am some kind of a ‘field observer’ in this cabinet, and in the government,” she said.

Strock said the concept of Israeli rule in Gaza has been “tainted and delegitimized,” addressing a document published by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in response to the State Comptroller’s probe into Oct. 7, 2023.

“Anyone who reads these documents will see that every head of the security agencies and all public representatives in the cabinet immediately reject and distance themselves from the idea of Israeli rule in Gaza,” she said.

“Gaza is part of the land of Israel according to the Torah, Jewish law, and international law,” Strock added.

Strock expressed her support for building settlements in Gaza. Drawing a parallel with Judea and Samaria [West Bank], she noted that creating “hundreds of small settlements, farms, and the like” resulted in “effective control” over the situation and the Palestinian population.

Strock further addressed the issue of the Palestinian Authority emblem being used by Gaza’s technocratic committee, noting that the name had been altered to the ‘National Committee.’

“This shouldn’t be a ‘national’ body governing the Gaza Strip, but a local technocratic body managing civil affairs there,” she said.