Israel’s willingness to pay a heavy price for the return of hostages from Hamas captivity is a strength, not a weakness, National Unity chairman Benny Gantz said at the Jerusalem Post’s Annual New York Conference on Monday.

“We must bring home all of the hostages and take care of the rest later,” he said.

Asked about comments he made a number of weeks ago against the formation of a Palestinian state, Gantz said that while most Israelis did not want to govern the Palestinians, they were also not willing to risk national security. The party leader stressed that Israel must maintain security superiority over the whole region and must be able to take care of itself in all scenarios.

Israel must maintain bipartisan support of United States

Asked about the fact that US President Donald Trump skipped Israel in his trip to the Middle East last week, Gantz said that Israel must maintain bipartisan US support and that a “trip here or trip there” would not harm the strategic alliance between the two nations.

Furthermore, he said, while Israel should maintain vigilance facing Lebanon and Syria, it should also look for opportunities to pursue normalization wherever possible.

National Unity Party head Benny Gantz speaks with the Post's editor-in-chief Zvika Klein at the Jerusalem Post Conference in New York City on May 19, 2025. (credit: MARC ISRAEL SELLEM/THE JERUSALEM POST)
National Unity Party head Benny Gantz speaks with the Post's editor-in-chief Zvika Klein at the Jerusalem Post Conference in New York City on May 19, 2025. (credit: MARC ISRAEL SELLEM/THE JERUSALEM POST)
Regarding the “day after” the war in Gaza and Judea and Samaria, Gantz said that the focus should first and foremost be on Iran, which should not be allowed to continue influencing the region. Once the Iranian threat was neutralized, the future of Gaza would have two conditions in the long run:  it could not be Hamas, and it could not be Israel. Building a governing alternative would take a decade, and deradicalizing Gaza’s residents would take a generation, so these processes would take time, he said.

Gantz said that the people of Gaza were human beings who deserved a better future.

On October 7, Hamas not only attacked Israel but also targeted the future of the people of Gaza themselves, he pointed out, saying that ultimately, Gaza’s future would be up to its people, he added.