Amihai Eliyahu | |
|---|---|
| עמיחי אליהו | |
 | |
| Ministerial roles | |
| 2022–2025 | Minister of Heritage |
| 2025– | Minister of Heritage |
| Faction represented in theKnesset | |
| 2022–2023 | Otzma Yehudit |
| 2025– | Otzma Yehudit |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1979-04-24)24 April 1979 (age 46) Jerusalem, Israel |
| Political party | Otzma Yehudit |
| Children | 6[1] |
| Parent(s) | Shmuel Eliyahu (father) Mordechai Eliyahu (paternal grandfather) |
| Residence(s) | Rimonim, Mateh Binyamin Regional Council, West Bank |
Amihai Ben-Eliyahu (Hebrew:עמיחי בן אליהו; born 24 April 1979),[2][3] commonly known asAmihai Eliyahu (Hebrew:עמיחי אליהו), is anIsraeli far-right[4] politician and activist who has served asMinister of Heritage since 2025. Eliyahu currently serves as a member of theKnesset forOtzma Yehudit, an office he briefly served in following the2022 Israeli legislative election.
In 2023, Eliyahu received international attention for his suggestion thatnuclear weapons be used in theGaza Strip in theGaza war. He is a resident of theWest Banksettlement ofRimonim.
In January 2025, Eliyahu resigned from his ministerial position in response to the2025 Gaza war ceasefire,[5] and rejoined the Knesset in accordance with theNorwegian Law.[6] He rejoined the cabinet in March.
He was born inJerusalemand raised inShlomi, a town inNorthern Israel.[citation needed] He is the son ofShmuel Eliyahu, and the grandson ofMordechai Eliyahu, the former SephardiChief Rabbi of Israel.[7] He attended variousyeshivas across the country, and during hisIDF service, he served in theParatroopers Brigade and fought in the2006 Lebanon War.[8]
Prior to joiningOtzma Yehudit, he was a supporter of theNational Union party.[9] He was placed 18th on theYamina list ofSeptember 2019 Israeli legislative election, he didn't make into the Knesset since the alliance only won seven seats. Eliyahu was placed fourth on the Otzma Yehudit list in the2022 Israeli legislative election,[9] and became an MK.[10]
He becameMinister for Jerusalem Affairs and Heritage on 29 December 2022, and resigned from the Knesset on 1 January 2023 as part of theNorwegian Law.[3][11]
On 17 January 2025, Otzma Yehudit held a press conference in which they announced their intention to withdraw from the coalition if the government accepted thethree-phase ceasefire proposal.[12] The proposal was accepted, and Eliyahu subsequently resigned alongside the rest of the party's ministers when the ceasefire went into effect on 19 January 2025.[13] His term ended on 21 January.[14] Otzma Yehudit has stated its intention to rejoin the governing coalition if the deal does not result in a permanent ceasefire.[12]
The cabinet approved Eliyahu's reappointment on 18 March[15] and it was approved by the Knesset the following day.[16]
Eliyahu is a strong opponent of proposals for atwo-state solution, describing theGreen Line as a "fictitious line". He supports fullIsraeli annexation of the West Bank, and has called on Israel to "impose sovereignty onJudea and Samaria".[4]
Eliyahu has criticized both police and theIsrael Defense Forces (IDF) over alleged preferential treatment towardsPalestinians in the West Bank oversettlers. In August 2023, he claimed that "the IDF, police and [security] services in the last three decades" had adopted "the world view of the Palestinian population, that automatically views thesettlers as guilty".[17]
Eliyahu has also called for the execution of Palestinian prisoners.[18] In December 2023, he said that Israel "should fully occupy the Gaza Strip" after the war and buildIsraeli settlements there.[19]
Eliyahu in July 2024 urged his supporters to protest atSde Teiman detention camp against the Israeli military police's detention of nine Israeli soldiers suspected of abuse of a Palestinian prisoner; Eliyahu then joined other right-wingers in illegally invading the Sde Teiman detention camp.[20]
After Hamas released the dead bodies of theBibas Family, four Israelis taken as hostages; Eliyahu compared Hamas toAmalek, the biblical enemy of the Jews. Quoting the bible, Eliyahu wrote that Israel should “blot out the memory of Amalek from under the heavens.”[21]
In July 2025, amidst afamine caused by theIsraeli blockade of the Gaza Strip, Eliyahu said that "there is no nation that feeds its enemies. The government is racing ahead for Gaza to be wiped out."[22]
In an interview with Radio Kol Berama during theGaza war, Eliyahu claimed that the use ofnuclear weapons was "one way" when discussing Israel's options in its ongoing military action in theGaza Strip, adding "The second way is to discover what is important to them, what scares them, what deters them... They are not afraid of death." He also endorsed thedisplacement of Gaza's Palestinian population, stating "They can go toIreland or deserts, the monsters in Gaza should find a solution by themselves." He also objected to humanitarian aid entering Gaza saying "we wouldn’t hand the Nazis humanitarian aid" and that there were no "uninvolved civilians in Gaza".[23] Further, he also said that anyone waving thePalestinian flag "shouldn’t continue living on the face of the earth".[24]
Eliyahu's statement immediately sparked controversy in and outside of Israel. His comments were condemned by opposition leader and former Prime MinisterYair Lapid, who described it as a "horrifying and insane remark" and urged his firing.[25] Eliyahu was also condemned byNational Unity leaderBenny Gantz and defense ministerYoav Gallant.[23]Gerry Carroll, a member of theNorthern Ireland Assembly, condemned Eliyahu's comments in response to his suggestion that Palestinians be removed from Gaza and transferred to Ireland.[26]
In response, Eliyahu defended his statements, saying that "any sensible person" knew that the comments were "metaphorical", but maintained his support for a "powerful and disproportionate response to terrorism".[27] Prime MinisterBenjamin Netanyahu disavowed his comments and announced his suspension from cabinet meetings.[28][29] However, Eliyahu took part in a cabinet telephone vote later that day.[30][31] National security ministerItamar Ben-Gvir is reported to have intervened on behalf of Eliyahu.[32]
Eliyahu's remarks were included in thegenocide case submitted bySouth Africa to theInternational Court of Justice as an expression of genocidal intent against the Palestinian people.[33][34]
While serving as Israel’s Minister of Heritage, Eliyahu stated during an interview with Kol Barama radio on 24 July 2025, "The government is rushing to erase Gaza, and thank God we are erasing this evil. All of Gaza will be Jewish."[35] His comments were made amid increasing cases of malnutrition in the Gaza Strip andglobal warnings of starvation and famine.[36]
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu released a statement on his officialX account that "Minister Amichay Eliyahu does not speak for the government I lead. He is not a member of theSecurity Cabinet that determines the conduct of the war."[37]
Eliyahu is married and has six children. He lives inRimonim, an Israeli settlement in the Judean Hills east of Jerusalem on the West Bank of the Jordan River.[38][9]