Two Israeli ministers, Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich, have been barred entry into the Netherlands for calling for the ethnic cleansing of Palestinians from the Gaza Strip.
The Dutch foreign minister, Caspar Veldkamp, announced on Monday that he has completely banned the two far-right Israeli ministers.
He justified the ban by saying that the ministers “repeatedly incited violence against the Palestinian population, persistently advocated for the expansion of illegal settlements and called for ethnic cleansing in the Gaza Strip.”
The hard-line Zionists are National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, both of whom are key partners in Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s coalition.
The Dutch government has also stated that it will summon Israel’s ambassador to denounce the “unbearable and indefensible” situation in Gaza.
The letter published late on Monday by the Dutch Foreign Minister, included a number of measures given to lawmakers, declaring that “the war in Gaza must stop.”
Extremist policies of the two ministers
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Ben-Gvir and Smotrich are known as notorious hard-liners who staunchly support the illegal Israeli settlement movement in the occupied West Bank and the continued genocide in Gaza.
The pair are pushing for what they call the “voluntary emigration of its Palestinian population in order to build Jewish settlements”.
Ben-Gvir’s extremist policies are no stranger to controversies.
Just last month, he formed a new police unit in the occupied West Bank composed of over 100 illegal Jewish settlers.
The formation of this unit, dubbed the “First Response Unit”, is seen as a direct move to deepen Israel’s long-existing plans for the annexation of the occupied West Bank.
Britain, Australia, Canada, New Zealand and Norway have all imposed financial sanctions on the two men last month.
The reaction from Ben-Gvir and Smotrich
Ben-Gvir was very vocal when it came to the Dutch-imposed ban saying, “Even if I’m banned from all of Europe, I’ll keep working for our country and demanding that we topple Hamas and back our fighters.”
The Dutch government went further as Prime Minister Dick Schoof said his government was “considering taking national measures” against Israel and is prepared to suspend its participation in an upcoming EU research programme if Israel continues to obstruct humanitarian aid into Gaza.
The extremist statements continued from Ben-Gvir, as he demanded a “full siege,” blocking aid into Gaza and said that “there are no uninvolved civilians in Gaza”.
Smotrich continued the saga with genocidal statements as he called for reoccupying Gaza and that Israel should “stop being afraid of the word occupation.”
Many leaders and analysts worldwide have condemned this as a direct incitement to violence and genocide.
Smotrich claimed on X that European leaders were surrendering to “the lies of radical Islam” and that Jews can no longer live safely in Europe.
“In a place where terrorism is tolerated and terrorists are welcomed, a Jewish minister from Israel is unwanted, terrorists are free, and Jews are boycotted,” National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir wrote on X.
The blockade on Gaza has surpassed the 18-year mark, when Israel shut down all crossings and the entry of most aid convoys.
The death toll of the genocide in Gaza has now surpassed 60,000 mark since October 2023, with the majority being women and children.
