Jerusalem, Nov 14 (EFE).- Israeli actions in the besieged Palestinian enclave of Gaza “amount to ethnic cleansing,” Human Rights Watch said in a report on Thursday.
The 154-page report, “‘Hopeless, Starving, and Besieged’: Israel’s Forced Displacement of Palestinians in Gaza,” comes amid an ongoing Israeli military campaign in northern region of the coastal strip that has “most likely” created a new wave of forced displacement of hundreds of thousands of civilians.
The report examines how Israeli authorities’ conduct has led to the displacement of over 90 percent of the population of Gaza. 1.9 million Palestinians, and the widespread destruction of much of the enclave over the last 13 months of war.
“Israeli forces have carried out deliberate, controlled demolitions of homes and civilian infrastructure, including in areas where they have apparent aims of creating ‘buffer zones’ and security ‘corridors,’ from which Palestinians are likely to be permanently displaced,” the report said.
Nadia Hardman, a refugee and migrant rights researcher at Human Rights Watch, told reporters that displacement due to military operations can only be justified if there are no other alternatives.
“The Israeli government cannot claim to be keeping Palestinians safe when it kills them along escape routes, bombs so-called safe zones, and cuts off food, water, and sanitation,” said Hardman.
“Israel has blatantly violated its obligation to ensure Palestinians can return home, razing virtually everything in large areas.”
The rights group urged the United States, Germany, and other countries to “immediately suspend weapons transfers and military assistance to Israel.”
“Continuing to provide arms to Israel risks complicity in war crimes, crimes against humanity, and other grave human rights violations.”
The international community, the report emphasizes, should condemn as war crimes and crimes against humanity the forced displacement of the civilian population by Israel, and pressure it through sanctions and other measures to put an end to this situation and protect the lives of civilians.
Since the conflict began on Oct 7, 2023, more than 43,500 people have died and 86 percent of the civilian infrastructure has been destroyed, according to data from the Gazan government controlled by the Islamist group Hamas.
The publication of the report coincides with a military campaign in the northern part of the enclave that began on Oct 6 and has caused new displacements towards Mawasi, a «humanitarian zone» isolated by the sea in the southwest, which is also targeted by attacks and where around two million displaced people are crowded together.
According to HRW, Israel has violated international humanitarian law, which allows the displacement of civilians only under conditions of extreme military necessity and requires ensuring the safety and return of displaced persons.
The document notes that the instructions for carrying out evacuations have often been imprecise and communicated with little advance notice, and it 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 to Gaza, to the point that October was the month with the least aid entering. EFE
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