UN relief organization accuses Israel of expulsion

The fierce fighting between the Israeli military and Hamas in the Gaza Strip is driving hundreds of thousands of Palestinians to flee their homes. The UN refugee organization sees this as the first step in a war crime committed by the Israelis. A reaction from Jerusalem comes promptly.

The head of the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees (UNRWA), Philippe Lazzarini, has accused Israel, in its military action against the Islamist Hamas in the Gaza Strip, of driving forward the mass expulsion of the population living there to Egypt. The developments perceived by the UN indicate "that an attempt is being made to resettle Palestinians in Egypt, regardless of whether they remain there or are resettled elsewhere", Lazzarini wrote in an opinion piece for the Los Angeles Times.

The widespread destruction in the north of the Hamas-ruled Palestinian territory and the resulting refugee movements are "the first stage of such a scenario", the UNRWA chief explained. The expulsion of civilians from the town of Chan Junis in the south of the Gaza Strip, closer to the border with Egypt, would then be the next step.

If this path continues and leads to what many are already calling a "second Nakba", "Gaza will no longer be a land for Palestinians", Lazzarini explained, using the Arabic term "Nakba" for "catastrophe", which refers to the expulsion of around 760,000 Palestinians following Israel's founding of the state in 1948.

Israel: "This is simply not true"

A spokesperson for the Israeli Ministry of Defense, which is also responsible for the Palestinian civilian population, firmly rejected the accusation. "There is not, never has been and never will be an Israeli plan to relocate the inhabitants of the Gaza Strip to Egypt. That is simply not true." Last week, an Israeli government spokesperson had already said that Israel was focusing on "bringing civilians to safety within the Gaza Strip".

Almost three weeks after the brutal Hamas attack on Israel on October 7 and the subsequent Israeli military offensive in the Gaza Strip, the Rafah border crossing between the Palestinian territory and Egypt was opened to people for the first time. Among those leaving were both injured Palestinians, who were taken to Egypt for medical treatment, and foreigners.

According to UN figures, more than half of the houses in the Gaza Strip have now been destroyed. Around 1.9 million people, about 85 percent of the population, have had to leave their homes. The southern region of Rafah along the border with Egypt has become a huge refugee camp. Aid supplies have only been able to be distributed there since Friday due to the ongoing fighting in other areas.

Hamas reports almost 18,000 Palestinians killed

The Gaza war was triggered by Hamas' major attack on Israel on October 7. Hundreds of Hamas fighters, classified as a terrorist organization by the USA and the EU, had infiltrated Israel from the Gaza Strip and committed atrocities, mainly against civilians, including many women and children. According to the Israeli authorities, 1,200 people were killed and around 240 others were taken hostage in the Gaza Strip.

Israel then declared war on Hamas and has been attacking the Gaza Strip almost continuously ever since - there has only been a ceasefire of one week so far. According to unverifiable information from Hamas, at least 17,700 people have been killed in the Gaza Strip so far, most of them women and children. The inhabitants of the Gaza Strip are largely prevented from leaving the coastal strip.

Read also:

The United Nations has expressed concern over Israel's actions in the Gaza Strip, with UNRWA chief Philippe Lazzarini accusing Israel of attempting to resettle Palestinians to Egypt, potentially leading to a second "Nakba" for Palestinians. However, the Israeli Ministry of Defense has rejected these accusations, stating that there is no plan to relocate Gaza Strip inhabitants to Egypt.

Source: www.ntv.de