The Israeli government has announced plans to create a “humanitarian city” in southern Gaza, which human rights groups have condemned as a concentration zone.
This development comes amid intensifying Israeli attacks on Gaza, resulting in significant loss of life and widespread destruction. According to reports, at least 57,762 people have been killed and 137,656 wounded in the conflict.
The international community has reacted strongly to the situation in Gaza. The European Union has “deeply regretted” the US decision to impose sanctions on Francesca Albanese, the UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights in Palestine.
Albanese has been critical of Israel’s actions in Gaza, and the US sanctions have been widely condemned as an attempt to silence her. “The European Union strongly supports the United Nations human rights system and we deeply regret the decision to impose sanctions on Francesca Albanese,” said Anouar El Anouni, a spokesman for the EU.
Hamas has also condemned the US sanctions on Albanese, stating that they are a “blatant expression of the US administration’s blatant bias toward Zionist war crimes.” The group called on the US administration to reverse its policies, which it says position it as a de facto participant in the campaigns to kill children and women and destroy civilian life in the Gaza Strip.
Analysts have described Israel’s plan for Gaza as a potential “staging post” for ethnic cleansing. Daniel Levy, the president of the US/Middle East Project, said that the location of the humanitarian city in southern Gaza was “a premeditated part of a plan of social-demographic engineering to move Palestinians – to relocate, displace and kettle them – into this area in the south.” Tamer Qarmout, an associate professor in public policy, said that Israel’s actions were part of a “perfect crime” that was being committed with impunity, thanks to US support.
The situation in Gaza is dire, with signs of hunger and desperation visible everywhere. The UN has delivered its first fuel shipment to Gaza in 130 days, but it was not enough to meet the territory’s needs.
The head of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, Philippe Lazzarini, has accused Israel of engineering the “most cruel and Machiavellian scheme to kill” in Gaza. He described Gaza as a “graveyard” for children and starving people, saying that the international community’s norms and values were “being buried” in the territory.