Is Israel using a “surrender or starve” strategy? – DW – 10/16/2024

The Israeli army’s latest invasion could not be more devastating to the residents of Jabaliya in northern Gaza, who have already endured the blasts and hardships of the war between Israel and Hamas, now in its second year.

“It’s dangerous. Nobody can move. It’s dangerous and unsafe. They told us to leave, but there was no time. Suddenly, the area was engulfed and on fire,” said Mohamed, who did not want to give his last name. , told DW by phone.

Almost two weeks ago, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) launched a new ground assault on the Jabaliya refugee camp in northern Gaza, ordering people to leave the area once again. The IDF said the intelligence demonstrated efforts by Hamas, the militant group that runs the region, to resettle and reintegrate the area.

Palestinians and the United Nations fear the latest invasion is part of Israel’s “surrender or starve” strategy to forcibly evict northerners and seal off northern Gaza, plans Israel denies.

“The Israeli military appears to be completely isolating northern Gaza from the rest of the region,” the UN human rights office said in a statement.

Mohamed, 41, was visiting relatives in neighboring Gaza City with his wife and three children when tanks advanced and airstrikes intensified in Jabalia. He asked not to move.

“My neighbors and I are close to each other, trying to share food and water. I don’t know how long it will last,” he said.

The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) estimates that 50,000 people have been displaced from Jabaliya in the past two weeks, with others trapped in their homes by the fierce fighting around them. According to OCHA, about 84% of the territory is under an “exit order” by the Israeli military.

Situation in northern Gaza “terrible”

Earlier this month, the Israeli military released a map showing new evacuation orders in several areas of the Gaza Strip, including Beit Hanun, Jabalia and Beit Lahia in northern Gaza. Residents were urged to evacuate immediately using the main north-south highway Saladin Highway (Salah al-Din), a designated “humanitarian zone” in southern Gaza, a densely populated area without basic services, which Israel has also targeted. Past

But many have grown weary of displacement and sought refuge in northern Gaza amid shelling and fighting. Aya Tawfiq, a volunteer nurse, fled Jabaliya with her brothers and father to the northern suburbs of Gaza City, Sheikh Ratwan.

“We don’t want to go south,” Tawfiq told DW via text message. “The conditions are dire. We don’t want to live in a tent, there are also bombings and deaths.”

He described the situation in Jabaliya as “horrendous” as the fighting has moved closer to the area where his family is.

“We are staying in a house near the new evacuation zone. We hear explosions, the sound of tanks and the sound of drones above us. We don’t know if we can stay here or not,” Tawfiq said, adding that people continued to move for safety.

They fear that they will not be able to return home.

Gaza’s emergency services say they can’t get through areas of heavy fighting and calls for help are going unanswered.

“Access to these areas is a big risk for paramedics and civil defense,” said Fares Afana, head of ambulance services in northern Gaza. “There are many wounded and martyrs (dead bodies) lying in the streets.”

OCHA estimates that there are at least 400,000 people in northern Gaza, including Gaza City, the territory’s largest. Those who stayed in northern Gaza last year defied repeated military orders and moved south for various reasons.

Some take care of elderly and sick relatives. Others refuse to be uprooted from their homes or feel unsafe to go anywhere under the constant threat of airstrikes. Many families are scattered across Gaza.

Both Mohamed and Aya Tawfiq fear they will not be allowed to return to their homes in northern Gaza. The small territory is now divided by the Netzarim Corridor, a new road controlled by the Israeli army that runs from east to west in central Gaza. The people of the area say that this highway has made it impossible to return to the north.

Gaza’s Hamas-run Interior Ministry advised the public to ignore calls to travel to other parts of the northern enclave and to avoid traveling south. The Israeli military said in a statement on Monday that Hamas fighters were actively preventing some people from leaving.

What is the Israeli “surrender or starve” plan?

Recent military moves and evacuation orders have fueled speculation among Palestinians, media and aid agencies that the Israeli government is gradually pursuing a “surrender or starve” strategy in northern Gaza, also known as the “General Plan”.

The plan was proposed by a group of retired senior officers led by retired Major General Geora Eiland, a former National Security Adviser. According to Israeli media reports, Israel’s cabinet has recently discussed several options, but it is unclear if any of them have been accepted.

The strategy aims to force Hamas and its leader, Yahya Shinwar, to surrender by putting pressure on the remaining population in the north. Israel has long accused Hamas and other militant groups of hiding among civilians. Under the plan, civilians will be ordered to leave through southern Gaza evacuation routes and the northern section will be formally sealed off. Anyone who remains is considered an enemy combatant, and all supplies are subject to a total siege.

The far right calls for Israeli resettlement in Gaza

Left-wing Israeli newspaper Haaretz Senior security officials indicated this week that the political leadership was pushing for annexation of parts of the Gaza Strip. It comes amid renewed calls from far-right politicians and ministers for Gaza resettlement.

Far-right groups have announced a mass rally in the coming days to “train” for Gaza resettlement. However, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has repeatedly rejected any plan to allow Israeli settlements into Gaza.

Although it is unclear whether the military has adopted any elements of the plan in its current invasion, UN officials have raised the alarm.

“Since October 1, Israeli authorities have isolated northern Gaza from essential supplies,” Muhannad Hadi, the humanitarian coordinator for the Occupied Palestinian Territories, said in a statement on Sunday. Military operations have forced the closure of bakeries, medical centers and shelters, while “hospitals have seen an influx of traumatized wounded,” the report added.

For people like Tawfiq, the only thing that matters is surviving this latest Israeli incursion. “This invasion is tougher than the previous invasion,” Tawfiq said. “We still have no energy. We are completely exhausted. We are constantly fighting to stay alive and not go crazy.”

(gg/cp)