The Israelis are already planning for the removal of the Palestinians from Gaza. Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said that he has instructed the army to prepare plans for large numbers of Palestinians to leave the Gaza Strip in line with President Donald Trump’s proposal for the war-ravaged territory, AP reported this morning. He said on Feb. 6 that the plan “will include options for exit at land crossings as well as special arrangements for exit by sea and air.”
AP notes that U.S. officials later said the relocation would only be temporary, but Palestinians fear Israel would never allow them to return, deepening and perpetuating a refugee crisis dating back to the establishment of Israel in 1948.
“Gaza’s residents should be allowed the freedom to exit and emigrate, as is the practice anywhere around the world,” Katz suggested, adding that Trump’s plan could advance “rehabilitation plans in a demilitarized Gaza that poses no threat in the post-Hamas era, which will take many years.”
