Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the population of Gaza will be displaced to the south after his security cabinet approved an expanded military operation in the enclave that a minister described as a plan to “conquer” the territory.

JERUSALEM — Israel’s Cabinet voted Monday to seize the Gaza Strip for an unspecified amount of time in a move that could see Israel reestablish control over a territory it vacated two decades ago. Israel withdrew from Gaza in 2005 after a decades-long occupation and then imposed a blockade on the territory along with Egypt.