PBB: Israel's Efforts To Change Gaza Strip Arrangement Must Be Firmly Rejected

Toll road illustration (Photo: dock. intermediate)

JAKARTA - The head of the United Nations (UN) aid on Friday said any attempt by Israel to change the composition of the Gaza Strip "must be firmly rejected".

"We are deeply concerned by a recent statement from Israeli ministers regarding plans to encourage the mass transfer of civilians from Gaza to a third country, which is currently called a voluntary relocation"," Martin Griffiths told the Security Council of humanitarian situations in Israel and the Palestinian Population Region.

"This statement raises great concerns about the possibility of forced mass transfer or deportation of Palestinians from the Gaza Strip, something that is strictly prohibited under international law. Any attempt to change the demographic composition of Gaza must be firmly rejected," he said.

Several countries have offered to accommodate civilians who want to leave Gaza to save themselves,AThihsaid. "I would like to emphasize that anyone leaving Gaza should be allowed to return, as international law demands.

Griffiths said the situation in Gaza remained "terrible" because Israel's non-stop military operation continued. "There is no safe place in Gaza. A dignified human life is almost impossible."

He reiterated his demands for a ceasefire and for the Council to take immediate action to end the war.

Meanwhile the assistant head of the human rights office Ilze Brands Kehris said the dire situation and great suffering in Gaza could be prevented and estimated, and had been warned for weeks.

He said the massive evacuations in Gaza began on October 12 when the Israeli government ordered Palestinians north of Wadi Gaza to vacate their homes and go south.

"While Israel said the evacuation order was for the safety of Palestinian civilians, who appeared to have made few provisions to ensure the relocation complied with international law.

Such forced evacuation, which does not meet its legal requirements, has the potential to become a forced transfer, and is a war crime, Kehris said.

Kehris stated that the statement of 'instigating' Israeli leaders pushing for permanent resettlement of Palestinians abroad has raised concerns that Palestinians are deliberately forced out of Gaza and will not be able to return.

"This cannot be tolerated. The right of Palestinians to return to their homes must receive strict guarantees," he added.

Israel has launched non-stop air and landstrikes in the Gaza Strip since cross-border attacks by Hamas, which Tel Aviv says killed about 1,200 people.

At least 23,708 Palestinians were killed, mostly women and children, and 60,050 people injured, according to Palestinian health authorities.

According to the United Nations, 85 percent of Gaza's population has become refugees amid food shortages, clean water and medicines, while 60 percent of infrastructure in the region is damaged or destroyed.