JERUSALEM — Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Wednesday he hopes to curb a wave of Palestinian assaults by expelling to Gaza families of assailants found to have encouraged them to attack Israelis.

Netanyahu, in a letter to Attorney-General Avichai Mandelblit released to the media, asked for a legal opinion on such a move, which he said would “lead to significant reduction in terrorist activities against the state and its citizens.”

Mandelblit, who assumed his post last month, and his predecessor have rejected similar expulsion proposals floated by right-wing cabinet ministers, political sources said.

But with pressure growing on Netanyahu to take tougher action against violence now in its sixth month, he appeared to have little to lose politically by formally asking for Mandelblit’s approval, even if it was unlikely to be granted.

Palestinians who carry Israeli citizenships have been living there since before the establishment of the state of Israel. 

Angered by the occupation of the West Bank, blockade on Gaza and continuing system of injustice, Palestinians have been carrying stabbings and other attacks against Israelis.