Gaza Withdrawal Was an Absolute Mistake and Caused Oct. 7 Massacre, Says Israeli President Herzog, Commander Who Oversaw the Withdrawal, General Gantz, Majority of Israelis

ZOA Was the ONLY Group in the Conference of Presidents to Oppose the Gaza Withdrawal in 2005

Zionist Organization of America (ZOA) National President Morton A. Klein released the following statement:

The Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations has had very few Conference of Presidents votes on any issue. But back in 2005, it did vote on the forced Gaza removal of 10,000 Jews from their homes in Gaza, next to the Mediterranean Sea and from Northern Samaria. After a debate was set up on the issue between Mortimer Zuckerman, who supported the evacuation, and Morton Klein, who strongly opposed the evacuation, a vote was taken. The Zionist Organization of America was the ONLY group of the 51 members of the conference that voted to oppose the withdrawal. Every group ─ including ADL, AJC, AIPAC, Bnai Brith, HIAS, Reform movement, Jewish Federations, Peace Now, Ameinu, JCPA, AJ Congress, Conservative, Orthodox and Reconstructionist Jewish movements, every women’s group ─ erroneously, egregiously and immorally supported and refused to oppose the forced Gaza removal of every Jew, Jewish family and IDF soldier. After the vote, Morton Klein of the ZOA stood up and stated, “You will all rue the day you cast this mistaken and disastrous vote. This evacuation will blow up in our faces.” We are waiting for the leaders and member organizations of the Conference to publicly recognize and apologize for this terrible mistake and recognize why it was horrifically wrong to give more land to the Palestinian Arabs and forcibly throw out 10,000 innocent, peaceful Jews from their homes and community.

IN THE MEDIA

Gaza Disengagement Was 'Absolute Mistake,' Says Commander who Oversaw it

Fifteen years later, Maj.-Gen. (ret.) Gershon HaCohen: Gaza withdrawal gave Hamas ability to increase rocket arsenal

By Anna Ahronheim

(July 31, 2025 / J Post) With no presence in the Palestinian territory, there should be no cause for continued terrorism, some thought. With no more Israeli civilians or soldiers there they would no longer lose their lives to Palestinian terrorism emanating from the coastal enclave.

But they were wrong.

(...)

According to data released by the Foreign Ministry, 12,355 rockets and mortars have been fired into Israel since 2006. While weapons smuggling into the blockaded enclave from Egypt’s Sinai has decreased over the years, groups in Gaza have invested in producing their own locally-made rockets.

Before Operation Protective Edge began, Hamas had about 11,000 rockets, and while by the end of the war it was estimated that a third of its rockets remained, by 2018 it was already in possession of more rockets than before 2014.

Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad have carried out tests on an almost regular basis since the conclusion of Operation Protective Edge, firing rockets toward the sea to increase their range and destructive power.

Hamas has been producing their Qassam rockets since 2001, which had a range of 4 km. After 19 years they are able to strike as far away as Nahariya. The group also has a fighting force of close to 40,000, as well as highly trained naval commandos who are expected to take part in the next conflict with Israel.

“Hamas could not have made that arsenal before the Disengagement,” HaCohen said, adding that “there would have been fewer rocket attacks because Hamas now has that strategic capability that they didn’t have before.”

Herzog: The 2005 Disengagement from Gaza was a Mistake

By Uri Dagon and Yehuda Shlezinger

(April 28, 2025 / Israel Hayom) Israeli President Isaac Herzog believes the 2005 disengagement from the Gaza Strip was a strategic error, he told Israel Hayom in an interview, an excerpt from which was published on Monday.

“It is clear to me now that the disengagement was a mistake. Not the desire to separate from two million Palestinians—that was logical—but the act itself, which, due to the Palestinian Authority’s weakness, led to a Hamas takeover in Gaza,” said the president.

Ahead of Israel’s 77th Independence Day, Herzog finds himself caught in the middle.

“I’ve been called ‘the Kaplanist president’ and ‘the Bibist president’—which perhaps shows that I am maintaining balance. I take great care to remain balanced and act responsibly,” he said. “The President’s Residence is one of the few places where everyone is still willing to come and talk. That is my role: not to take sides, but to help heal the divide.”

20 Years After Disengagement: Majority of Israelis Support Israeli Settlement in Gaza

New poll reveals majority of Israeli public believes 2005 Disengagement from Gaza was a mistake, led to the October 7th massacre.

(July 31, 2025 / Israel National News) A majority of the Israeli public believes there is a direct connection between the 2005 Disengagement Plan and Hamas’ October 7, 2023 terror attack, a new poll revealed.

The poll, conducted by Maagar Mochot and commissioned by Israel Hayom, marks 20 years since Israel evacuated its communities from the Gaza Strip.

More than half of respondents said that had the Disengagement not occurred, the likelihood of the October 7 massacre would have been lower. This view stands in stark contrast to past and present security officials who have long insisted there is no direct link between the two events.

Among those with an opinion, 76% responded that Israel erred in implementing the Disengagement unilaterally. Given that the plan once enjoyed broad public support, the results reflect a significant shift in public sentiment.

Fifty-two percent of respondents expressed support for renewing Jewish settlement in the Gaza Strip. Among the haredi public, support stands at 83%, among the religious public at 67%, and among the secular public at 29%. In contrast, 50% of secular respondents opposed the move, with the remainder answering “don’t know.”

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