As the 20th anniversary of the Disengagement fast approaches, an Israel Hayom survey found Thursday that a majority believe it was a terrible mistake, one that led to the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas-led massacre, and that the Gaza Strip should be resettled with Jews.

Fully 76% of the 510 respondents polled said that Israel erred in carrying out a unilateral withdrawal from Gaza in 2005, when the IDF forcibly expelled more than 8,000 Jews from 20 villages and one town in the coastal enclave.

At the time, the government’s decision was hugely controversial, with polls showing support for it ranging between 50%-60%, and those opposing it warning repeatedly that if the settlers and IDF left, it would lead to a huge uptick of Palestinian terrorism.