The non-governmental human rights organization Human Rights Watch (HRW) considers that the Israeli authorities are carrying out one in the Gaza Strip, where a “widespread, unjustified and systematic” forced displacement of Palestinians is taking place.
in which he documents these crimes that, he claims, constitute “crimes against humanity.”
“Forced displacement is widespread, systematic and intentional and is part of a State policy and constitutes a crime against humanity. We consider these actions by the Israeli authorities to amount to ethnic cleansing,” said Nadia Hardman, refugee and migrant rights researcher at HRW.
Hardman emphasized in a press conference that displacement due to military operations can only be justified if there are no other alternatives.
“Israel cannot simply rely on the presence of members of Palestinian armed groups to justify the displacement of civilians. Israel would have to demonstrate that the displacement of civilians was, in each case, its only option,” he said.
In the document titled Desperate, hungry and besieged: the forced displacement of Palestinians in Gaza, The organization highlighted that 1.9 million residents of the enclave, 90% of the population, have been displaced.
The organization urged the United States, Germany and other countries to “immediately suspend arms transfers and military assistance to Israel,” and assured that those who continue to provide weapons to this country risk being complicit in its crimes.
“Israel cannot simply rely on the presence of members of Palestinian armed groups to justify the displacement of civilians”
The international community, the report highlights, should condemn Israel’s forced displacement of the civilian population as war crimes and crimes against humanity, and pressure it through sanctions and other measures to put an end to this situation and protect lives. of civilians.
Since the conflict began on October 7, 2023, more than 43,500 people have been killed and 86% of civilian infrastructure has been destroyed, according to data from the Gaza government controlled by the Islamist group Hamas.
Hardman noted that the extensive and often permanent damage in Gaza “is a deliberate attempt by Israeli authorities to create conditions that will make return not only difficult but impossible for many Palestinians.”
Tents destroyed by an Israeli attack in the supposedly safe area of Al Mawasi, southern Gaza, on November 13, 2024.
The publication of the report coincides with a military campaign in the north of the enclave that began on October 6 and has caused new displacements towards Mawasi, also a target of attacks and in which around two million displaced people are overcrowded.
According to HRW, Israel has failed to comply with international humanitarian law, which allows the displacement of civilians only under military conditions of extreme necessity and requires guaranteeing the security and return of displaced people.
The document states that the instructions for carrying out evacuations have often been imprecise and made known with little notice, and also accuses Israel of blocking the entry and distribution of humanitarian aid.
In recent weeks, UN agencies have accused Israel of increasingly restricting humanitarian aid in Gaza, to the point that October was the month with the least aid coming in.
