Israeli Minister Reportedly Asks IDF To Kill Palestinians Instead Of Arresting Them

Israel’s far-right national security minister has reportedly asked whether the military could kill some of the Palestinians taken captive instead of arresting them — the latest comment by one of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s multiple extremist cabinet members that dehumanizes residents of Gaza.

The comments by Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir were revealed Friday by Hebrew outlets Channel 12 and Ynet, and translated to English by the Times of Israel.

The Israeli Defense Force’s chief of staff, Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi, briefed ministers at a security cabinet meeting last week about recent operations in Gaza, where Israel has been carrying out a military offensive for almost seven months now in response to Hamas’ attack on Oct. 7 that killed about 1,200 people and captured roughly 250.

During the briefing, Halevi said that hundreds of Palestinians were recently arrested after surrendering to the military.

“Why are there so many arrests?” Ben-Gvir allegedly asked. “Can’t you kill some? Do you want to tell me they all surrender? What are we to do with so many arrested? It’s dangerous for the soldiers.”

Halevi was perplexed at the question, according to the Times of Israel, responding: “Dangerous for who?”

“We don’t shoot people who come out with their hands up. We shoot those who fight us,” the IDF official reportedly told Ben-Gvir. “There’s no dilemma here. Those who surrender, we arrest.”

According to a translation of the conversation, Agriculture Minister Avi Dichter told Ben-Gvir during the meeting that “I don’t know whether you’re a minister in Israel or a different country.” Dichter, a former director of the Shin Bet security service, is himself considered one of Netanyahu’s far-right