Israel’s Defence Minister, Israeli Katz, has instructed his military to prepare a plan to relocate all Palestinians in Gaza to a camp in the southern part of the territory. The plan aims to establish a “humanitarian city” on the ruins of Rafah, initially housing about 600,000 people and eventually accommodating the entire 2.1 million population.
Katz stated that the goal is to bring people inside after security screening to ensure they are not Hamas operatives and will not be allowed to leave during a proposed 60-day ceasefire. Construction would begin if conditions allow, according to Katz.
However, an Israeli human rights lawyer has condemned this plan as “nothing less than an operational plan for a crime against humanity”. The UN previously warned that the deportation or forcible transfer of an occupied territory’s civilian population is prohibited under international humanitarian law and amounts to ethnic cleansing.
The US President Donald Trump proposed that the US take over post-war Gaza and permanently resettle its population elsewhere. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he supports this idea, citing “free choice” for Palestinians who want to stay or leave.
In March, Arab states backed a $53bn alternative plan to Trump’s proposal, which would allow Palestinians in Gaza to stay in place and rejected any form of displacement. The Palestinian Authority and Hamas also endorsed the Egyptian plan, while the US and Israel deemed it inadequate.
The relocation plans come amid concerns of a repeat of the Nakba, or “catastrophe”, when hundreds of thousands fled their homes before and during the 1948 war that led to Israel’s creation. Many Palestinians fear being forced to leave again, having already experienced displacement multiple times in Gaza.
Source: https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c8rp31lk7mzo