Under the laws of war, the forced displacement of civilians from occupied territories is prohibited unless necessary for security or for urgent military reasons.
For forced displacement to be legal, civilians must be moved safely and provided with accommodation and essential supplies. They must also be able to return home after the end of hostilities in the area.
HRW’s report, based on interviews with refugee Palestinians, analysis of Israeli evacuation orders, satellite images showing the destruction of buildings, airstrike videos and photos, concludes that there are no valid and essential military reasons to justify the displacement of almost all of Gaza’s population and refugees. . No other legal conditions were met.
The US-based group said Israel’s evacuation orders were “inconsistent, inaccurate, often not communicated to civilians in sufficient time” and “failed to take into account the needs of people with disabilities and those unable to leave.” Israeli forces also “repeatedly attacked designated evacuation routes and safety zones,” he added.
The report states that Israeli authorities have blocked “all but a fraction of needed humanitarian aid, water, electricity and fuel” from reaching civilians in need, and have launched attacks damaging and destroying vital resources such as hospitals and bakeries. criticized for having it.
HRW also said the Israeli military “intentionally destroyed civilian infrastructure, including the controlled demolition of houses, with the explicit goal of creating an extended ‘buffer zone’ along the border between Israel and the Gaza Strip and creating a corridor that would bifurcate the Gaza Strip.” “Destroyed or seriously damaged it.”
“The scale of destruction is so large that it indicates an intention to permanently displace large numbers of people,” it warns.
Israeli government ministers were also quoted as saying that Gaza’s territory would be reduced and land would be handed over to Israeli settlers.
“Forced displacement is widespread and evidence suggests it is systematic and part of state policy. Such acts also constitute crimes against humanity,” says HRW.
“The systematic and violent displacement of Palestinians belonging to different ethnic groups from the Gaza Strip is likely to be planned on a permanent basis from the buffer zone and security corridors,” he said, adding that such actions “constitute ethnic cleansing.”
In response, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said in a statement that the report “presents information selectively in a way that obscures the context and makes certain blatant false statements.”
“The IDF’s warning to civilians to temporarily distance themselves from areas expected to be exposed to intense warfare is in line with its obligation under international law to take practicable precautions to mitigate civilian harm by providing advance warning before an attack.” It will be.” Added.
“The IDF is only active in areas where its troops are known to be present and is currently working to dismantle Hamas’ military infrastructure in several areas across the Gaza Strip.”
The IDF has also previously denied it was seeking to create a permanent buffer zone, and Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar recently said displaced people in northern Gaza would be allowed to return home once the war ends.
Also Thursday, a special committee of the United Nations General Assembly issued a new report finding that Israel’s methods of war in Gaza “are consistent with the characteristics of genocide, including large-scale civilian casualties and life-threatening situations intentionally inflicted on Palestinians.” I did it.
Israel has strongly denied that its forces are carrying out genocide in the Gaza Strip.
State Department spokesman Vedant Patel told reporters at a press briefing Thursday that the United States “unequivocally disagrees” that Israel’s methods of warfare are consistent with genocide.
“We believe that such expressions or accusations are completely unfounded,” he said.
Israel launched a campaign to destroy Hamas on October 7, 2023, in response to its unprecedented attacks on southern Israel. The attack left approximately 1,200 people dead and 251 taken hostage.
Since then, more than 43,700 people have died in Gaza, according to the Hamas-run health ministry.
