Tony Blair denies report linking him role in resettling Gazans

Former Prime Minister Tony Blair denied a recent report by Israeli TV alleging he would help “examine” the possibility of Western nations accepting Palestinian refugees. 

According to Channel 12, Blair was in Israel last week where he met with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Benny Gantz to discuss him possibly taking on the role as a mediator in efforts to bring Palestinians out of Gaza.

National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir was quick to welcome the report, saying: “This is a morally just step to take, first and foremost for Gaza border residents, and for all of Israel.”

Blair is now denying the report, calling it a lie: “The Channel 12 report in Israel linking Tony Blair to a discussion about a ‘role’ in the ‘voluntary resettlement of Gazans’ in Arab and other countries is a lie.”

“The story was published without any contact with Tony Blair or his team. No such discussion has taken place. Nor would Tony Blair have such a discussion, the idea is wrong in principle. Gazans should be able to stay and live in Gaza.”

Far-right ministers in Netanyahu’s government are advocating for the transfer of millions of Palestinians from Gaza as well as rebuilding Israeli settlements.

“We will be in security control, and we will need there to be civil [control]. I’m for completely changing the reality in Gaza, having a conversation about settlements in the Gaza Strip… We’ll need to rule there for a long time… If we want to be there militarily, we need to be there in a civilian fashion,” Finance Minister Smotrich said on Sunday.

“We want to encourage wilful emigration, and we need to find countries willing to take them in. We need to encourage immigration from there. If there were 100,000-200,000 Arabs in the Strip and not two million, the whole conversation about the day after [the war] would be completely different. They want to leave. They have been living in a ghetto for 75 years and are in need,” Smotrich told Army Radio.