Israel's Heritage Minister Amichai Eliyahu joined two other radical ministers who made outrageous calls to forcibly displace Palestinians from Gaza, amid relentless attacks that killed over 22,000 people, mostly women and children.
Speaking to a local radio station, Eliyahu, who uses extremist rhetoric against Palestinians, said Israel must break the "national dream" of the Palestinians, "and that's what we must do."
The far-right politician said since the Palestinians "slaughtered us on Oct. 7, so they must not be there [in Gaza]."
"We must find ways for Gazans that are more painful than death," he added.
In November, Eliyahu said dropping a "nuclear bomb" on the Gaza Strip is "an option."
Many countries have rejected calls by Israeli officials, including National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, to push Palestinians to leave the blockaded enclave.
Saudi Arabia called on the international community to act in the face of the Israeli government's "persistence" in violating international law "through its statements and actions."
Qatar, which played a mediating role in the temporary truce between Israel and Palestinian resistance group Hamas at the end of November, also "condemned in the strongest terms" the comments made by the two ministers.
"The policy of collective punishment and forced displacement practiced by the occupation authorities against the inhabitants of Gaza will not change the fact that Gaza is Palestinian land and will remain Palestinian," read a statement published by Qatar's foreign ministry.
Kuwait followed suit with its Gulf neighbors, and warned against "Israeli plans to displace Gaza residents in particular, and the Palestinian people in general."
The United States, France and the European Union have also denounced the comments.
The United Nations rights body on Thursday also voiced distress over the remarks.
The U.N. human rights chief Volker Türk said he was "very disturbed" after comments by senior Israeli officials calling for Palestinians to leave the besieged territory.
French and German foreign ministries also criticized Israeli government officials' outrageous statements.
Israel launched relentless air and ground attacks on the Gaza Strip after a cross-border attack by Hamas on Oct. 7.
At least 22,600 Palestinians have since been killed and 57,910 others injured, according to Gaza's health authorities. About 1,200 Israelis were killed in the Hamas incursion.
The onslaught has left Gaza in ruins, with 60% of the enclave's infrastructure damaged or destroyed, and nearly 2 million residents displaced amid acute shortages of food, clean water and medicine.
