Despite the order \u2014 and the hundreds of police officers and IDF soldiers dispatched to the scene \u2014 the marchers gathered at 5 p.m. near Zikim Beach, and within less than ten minutes, managed to pass the first army roadblock.<\/p>\n
\t When marchers began to cross past the checkpoint, soldiers appeared visibly agitated but refrained from making arrests, and retreated to a point further down the route, erecting another roadblock.<\/p>\n This pattern repeated itself before marchers reached the Gaza border fence, with The Times of Israel witnessing participants skirt at least four roadblocks erected by the army as they inched closer and closer to the Strip, with some nearing the frontier in an anarchic procession southward.<\/p>\n Younger and more agile marchers initially traipsed up sand dunes, through brush and over barbed wire to reach their destination, as army jeeps and ATVs were blocking the roads. As security forces let their guard down, larger families began to proceed down the paved road without interference.<\/p>\n Religious Zionist marchers sang and chanted gleefully during the procession. Many wore stickers reading, \u201cGaza is ours forever,\u201d and held flags calling to build a Third Temple. Some participants attended alone, but the vast majority came with their families.<\/p>\n \t Nachala claimed shortly before the march set out that organizers had reached an agreement with the army permitting them to gather at the entrance to Zikim Beach, though several IDF officers at the scene insisted no such permit was given for the march to proceed.<\/p>\n \u201cThank you to the tens of thousands that came as close as possible to our Gaza region with a clear call: we are settling Gaza now!\u201d read a statement from Nachala.<\/p>\n \t According to organizers, the march was aimed at pressuring the government to sign off on the reestablishment of three evacuated settlements in northern Gaza \u2014 Elei Sinai, Dugit and Nisanit.<\/p>\n The official endpoint was atop a hill with a view of what was once Elei Sinai. Many of the marchers made it to the site, where they erected an Israeli flag. Nachala\u2019s founder, Daniella Weiss, went back and forth down the road, urging participants to complete the march\u2019s final leg.<\/p>\n \t Ben Gvir, meanwhile, commended the marchers and expressed his wish for Jewish settlement throughout Gaza. \u201cIf they had said three years ago that we would control 70% of the territory of the Gaza Strip, no one would have believed it,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \u201cI say from here: There will be Jewish settlement in all of Gaza. Encourage voluntary immigration [of Palestinians to other countries], send those who need it to their countries. And we return home. Gaza is ours,\u201d he continued.<\/p>\n Speaking about a kilometer from the border, Communications Minister Shlomo Karhi of Likud also expressed his support for Jewish settlement in Gaza, calling to \u201csettle in all the regions of land granted to our forefathers, to show our enemies that it\u2019s not worth messing with us, to show a meaningful picture of victory.\u201d<\/p>\n \t Karhi went on to urge Israelis to \u201cplant deep roots in every land granted to our forefathers, including the Gaza region.\u201d<\/p>\n Smotrich was seen shaking hands with and offering his support to the marchers near the beginning of the route. \u201cGod forbid, if the left comes to power, this whole thing could go down the drain, and we will march here again to prevent evictions and destruction,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \t Thousands attended the march, though exact estimates varied. Police told the Ynet outlet that some 5,000 people joined in the procession, while organizers insisted the number was closer to 15,000.<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t The war with Iran has been draining for all of us in Israel. But when I heard about a high casualty incident \u2013 ballistic missile impacts in Arad and Dimona that left nearly 200 people wounded \u2013 I drank a cup of coffee, packed a bag, and headed south.<\/p>\n There, I spoke with Shilgit, the head of an after-school program for underprivileged youth. Standing outside her destroyed center, Shilgit said it was a miracle that no children were hurt and spoke about the community coming together in the hours since.<\/p>\n As a Times of Israel reporter, I\u2019m committed to telling stories of resilience like Shilgit\u2019s. But my colleagues and I can’t do this alone. If you value work like this, please consider joining our reader support group, The Times of Israel Community. Your financial support is essential to keep real human reporting like this going.<\/p>\n \u2014 Stav Levaton, military reporter<\/p>\n \t\t\t
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\n\t\tThis picture taken from a position on the Israeli border with the Gaza Strip shows settler activists attempting to make their way into the Palestinian territory on July 19, 2026. (Ilia YEFIMOVICH\/AFP)<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/F260719TA11-640x400.jpg\")
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\n\t\tIsraeli settler activists march through southern Israel toward the Gaza border as they call to resettle the Palestinian enclave, on July 19, 2026. (Tsafrir Abayov\/Flash90)<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/DSC05976-640x400.jpg\")
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\n\t\tSettler activists hike up a hill in an attempt to evade IDF forces and police during a march towards the Gaza border, in favor of Jewish settlement in the territory, on July 19, 2026. (Charlie Summers\/Times of Israel)<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/F260719TA07-640x400.jpg\")
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\n\t\tJews who support the re-establishment of Israeli settlements in the Gaza Strip march near the Israeli border with Gaza, in southern Israel, on July 19, 2026. (Tsafrir Abayov\/Flash90)<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/DSC06113.jpg\")
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\n\t\tCommunications Minister Shlomo Karhi greets a participant in a march to the Gaza border in support of Jewish settlement in the territory on July 19, 2026. (Charlie Summers\/Times of Israel)<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/AFP__20260719__C2KZ74H__v1__HighRes__PalestinianIsraelConflict-640x400.jpg\")
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\n\t\tIsraeli right-wing activists advocating Jewish settlement in Gaza gather on the border with the Gaza Strip as they attempt to cross over into the territory on July 19, 2026. (Ilia Yefimovich\/AFP)<\/p>\n
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