Fifteen Israeli families moved into the new Jewish community of Halutzei Gaza (Pioneers of Gaza), in the Simhoni Forest near Kibbutz Kfar Aza, last week, viewing the community as a stepping stone toward their goal of reestablishing Jewish communities inside the Gaza Strip.
The initiative is the brainchild of the Nachala Settlement Movement, which has long advocated for the return of Jewish communities to Gaza, particularly since the Oct. 7, 2023, massacre. The movement seeks to reverse the results of Israel’s 2005 disengagement, which led to the dismantling of all of 21 Jewish communities in Gaza and four in northern Samaria.
Lital Slonim, one of the directors of Nachala, told JNS that the new community, made up of caravans, was intended as a temporary arrangement, as the Israeli government has not yet authorized Jewish civilians to return to Gaza. The location was chosen deliberately, with Gaza in full view.
Slonim said Nachala has a waiting list of 1,500 Israeli families committed to resettling Gaza once authorized.
She added that Nachala has drawn up architectural plans for future Jewish communities in Gaza and is waiting for the green light to move forward.
Slonim said that, in the wake of the Oct. 7 massacre, many Israelis came to realize that maintaining the status quo was untenable from a security perspective.
"The only way to ensure security and maintain safety is to establish Jewish communities. You must have boots on the ground," she said.
According to Slonim, more than 80% of the current governing coalition supports the renewal of Jewish life in Gaza. She said the establishment of the temporary site is intended to send a clear message to the government: "We are demanding that the government let us go in."
More than 100 people attended an opening event for Halutzei Gaza last Thursday night, followed by more than 700 Israelis who spent Shabbat at the new community the following day, Slonim said, demonstrating their support for the initiative.
Relatives of Israelis slain in Gaza during the current war, now in its fourth year, were among those who attended. Slonim said these families want to ensure their loved ones did not die in vain, but that their sacrifices lead to the renewal of Jewish life in Gaza.
"The families want to see settlement. They understand our enemies need to lose the land they are standing on," she said.
One such family was that of Staff Sgt. Yishay Fitusi, a Golani Brigade soldier who was killed fighting Hamas at the Nahal Oz military outpost on Oct. 7, 2023.
The Fitusi family has a personal connection to the campaign to renew Jewish settlement in Gaza. They lived in Gush Katif, the bloc of Jewish communities in southern and central Gaza dismantled during the 2005 disengagement.
The IDF Spokesperson's Unit clarified to JNS that, due to the presence of civilians in the area as part of Nachala’s activities, the military was forced to restrict access to certain roads, but not communities, adjacent to the Gaza border fence.
At the same time the Israel Police Spokesperson's Unit told JNS it received a complaint from the Jewish National Fund (KKL-JNF) regarding unauthorized entry into Simhoni Forest, and the construction of structures at the site without authorization.
The spokesperson said the complaint is being handled in accordance with the police’s legal authority and in coordination with the relevant authorities.
Slonim stressed that the community's physical location is only temporary and the organization has tremendous political support for its activities in the area.
'The forefront of Zionism in our generation'
Otzma Yehudit MK Limor Son Har-Melech, who attended the community's opening event, told JNS that she supports the "heroic pioneers of the Nachala" Movement and the families who moved into the community.
"These remarkable people are not content with talk and declarations," she said. "They get up and take action, erecting structures, bringing in families, and leading with their own bodies and spirits the historic movement to return to the Gaza region."
Those involved "are at the forefront of Zionism in our generation," Son Har-Melech said. "They deserve every expression of appreciation, every show of support, and every form of assistance. I salute them and am proud to stand by their side."
Religious Zionist party MK Ohad Tal also told JNS that he supports Nachala's efforts to reestablish Jewish life in Gaza.
Last Friday after the community's opening event he posted on X saying:
"Tonight, the community of 'Pioneers of Gaza' was established near the security fence.
"Mr. Prime Minister, the only way to defeat Hamas and achieve total victory is through Jewish settlement on the land that has returned to our hands through the blood of our holy sons!
"The time has come to move 'Pioneers of Gaza' into the northern buffer area [in Gaza] which unquestionably must remain in Israeli hands.
"Mr. Prime Minister, [@netanyahu]—we stand behind you in carrying out this Zionist and rightful act!"
Following last week’s events, Nachala issued a similar statement calling for the community to be relocated to Gaza’s northern buffer zone, an area currently under IDF control.
"Gaza is an inseparable part of the Land of Israel, and only taking territory and establishing settlements will firmly imprint a clear consciousness of defeat on the enemy," the group said.
