GAZA: Plans by Israel for a new authority to facilitate the departure of Palestinians from the Gaza Strip were criticised by Israeli activists as well as by Jordan and Germany. A spokeswoman for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu earlier confirmed that the Security Cabinet had approved a proposal to set up an authority, under the Defence Ministry, tasked with "preparing the voluntary departure of residents of the Gaza Strip to third countries in a safe and controlled manner."
It comes after US President Donald Trump proposed to resettle Gaza's population of more than 2 million to Arab countries and convert the war-torn coastal strip into a Middle East "riviera", a vision that has been widely rejected by Israel's Arab neighbours, including Egypt which borders Gaza.
The Israeli campaign group Peace Now condemned the move, labelling it "an indelible stain on Israel" in an English-language post on X. "When life in a certain place is made impossible by bombing and siege, there is nothing 'voluntary' about people leaving," the organisation wrote.
The German Foreign Office said it had not yet examined the Israeli proposal but that it was potentially alarming. "If this involves setting up an authority with the aim of permanent expulsion of Palestinians from the Gaza Strip, that is unacceptable and must be condemned," a spokesman said in Berlin. The German government also expressed sharp criticism of Israel's decision to recognise 13 West Bank settlements seen as illegal under international law. "We sharply condemn this decision," a Foreign Office spokesman said. "We reject Israel's settlement policy, as it is contrary to international law and obstructs any chance of a two-state solution by blocking a viable Palestinian state," he added.
Jordan strongly condemned Israel's settlement policies, including the plan to facilitate migration from Gaza, with the Foreign Ministry in Amman saying they amount to forced displacement. All measures directed against the presence of Palestinians on their land constitute a blatant violation of international law, the ministry said. Jordan is one of the countries that has taken in the largest number of refugees per citizen, particularly Palestinians and Syrians.
UN Secretary-General António Guterres "has taken the difficult decision to reduce the United Nations footprint in Gaza," spokesman Stéphane Dujarric said in New York. Dujarric emphasised that the UN was not leaving Gaza and remains "committed to continuing to provide aid that civilians depend on for their survival and for their protection."
About 30 of the current 100 international staff members would leave the region for the time being, he said. The remaining employees and the more than 10,000 Palestinian employees of the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) would continue their work, he added. — dpa
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