Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich said that he views blocking humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip as “justified and moral,” even if it leads to the starvation of 2 million civilians, Israeli media reported.

He adds, however, that the international community would not permit such an outcome.

Smotrich made these remarks at a conference in Yad Binyamin, hosted by the Israel Hayom outlet.

“We are bringing in aid because there is no choice,” he said.

Stravation in all Gaza #isreal rejections aid. No water no food. Why no stop that. All Childern. And kid slowly dies. Where humanity. This. Due to Arab if this in any country you. Did that. pic.twitter.com/1CAJtYgAsK

— Anan fawzi (@AnanFawzi) June 22, 2024

“We can’t, in the current global reality, manage a war. Nobody will let us cause 2 million civilians to die of hunger even though it might be justified and moral until our hostages are returned. Humanitarian in exchange for Humanitarian is morally justified, but what can we do? We live today in a certain reality, we need international legitimacy for this war,” he further stressed.

Smotrich's recent comments have sparked outrage, reflecting a disturbing rhetoric that is interpreted as indicative of genocidal intent. His suggestion that blocking humanitarian aid to Gaza could be deemed “justified and moral” even if it results in mass starvation among 2 million civilians, underscores a broader strategy to impose extreme suffering on Gaza's population.

This rhetoric comes as the Israeli genocide in Gaza persists unabated, now extending over 10 months. The ongoing aggression has resulted in the killing of at least 40,000 Palestinians and has led to man-made starvation, with children among the most vulnerable victims.

Read next: 3,500 Gaza children at risk of death amid Israeli starvation tactics

Advocating for re-occupying Gaza

Smotrich asserted that "Israel" needs to regain full control over what enters the Gaza Strip, expressing his opposition to the military and Security Minister Yoav Gallant's position.

He added, “I don’t know if the prime minister doesn’t want or isn’t managing to rein them in."

The far-right minister noted that although he supported the idea of "Israel' resettling Gaza, he has not insisted on making this an official objective of the war.

Similarly, last month, Smotrich said in the Knesset, "The Palestinian State cannot be established because there is no such thing as a Palestinian people."