Former Israeli air-force commander says "we should employ a Nazi approach toward

Occupied Jerusalem - The former commander of the Israeli air-force, Major-Gen. Eitan Ben Eliyahu, who recently retired from military service, said in a recent lecture that Israel should adopt a Nazi-like approach toward what he called the Palestinian "demographic peril."

Speaking during a public event in Tel Aviv, Ben Eliyahu reportedly analyzed the options available to the Jewish state vis-à-vis the Palestinians and concluded that the only real solution was the expulsion of all or most of the Palestinians to neighboring Arab countries.

According to a reservist colonel who attended the event, Ben Eliyahu said Israel would have to spark off a "decisive war" arguing that the Jewish state was the strongest military force in the Middle East and enjoying strong international support.

The former air-force commander was quoted as saying that "it will not be difficult to bring Egypt, Syria and Jordan to their knees and to impose on them as a condition for settlement to agree that the Palestinians will be repopulated in the empty countries such Jordan and Egypt."

Ben Eliyahu reportedly spoke disdainfully of the "minority of Israelis" who opposed the expulsion of Palestinians.

Ben Eliyahu's remarks were made public Sunday in an email message posted on one of the Middle East-related web-lists.

The exact date and place of the lecture were not disclosed.