Are we heading towards a humanitarian catastrophe? Israel on Friday ordered the evacuation within 24 hours to the south of “all civilians” from Gaza City, a measure condemned by the UN and rejected by Hamas, on the seventh day of its war against this Palestinian Islamist movement that the Israeli Prime Minister promised to “crush”.
What are the strategic issues in the Gaza Strip? L’Express explains everything to you in three infographics.
A very poor enclave
In New York, the spokesperson for the UN Secretary General, Stéphane Dujarric, confirmed that the Israeli army had informed the organization of this order, which according to him concerns around 1.1 million inhabitants of the north of the Gaza Strip, almost half of the enclave’s total population. But an evacuation of such a scale is “impossible without causing devastating humanitarian consequences”, he warned. This Friday, the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) for its part announced on Friday the transfer of its operations center and its staff to the south of the Gaza Strip.
A chronic lack of electricity
According to the Israeli army, civilians will have to “go to the area south of Wadi Gaza”, a stream located south of Gaza City. “You will only be allowed to return to Gaza City when another announcement allowing this is made,” she said.
More than 423,000 Palestinians have had to leave their homes in the Gaza Strip to flee the bombings, according to the UN, which has launched an emergency appeal for donations worth $294 million. After the Hamas attack launched on Saturday against Israel, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant announced on Monday the imposition of a “complete siege” on the Gaza Strip, where these unprecedented attacks originated. Electricity, water and gas were cut off.
Egypt does not let Palestinians enter its territory
Egypt already fears an influx of refugees. Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sissi on Thursday urged Gazans to be “unwavering” and “stay on their land”, as calls grew for Egypt to allow safe passage for civilians from the enclave, which she refuses for the moment.
On the ground, the Israeli army is carrying out a massive bombing campaign on Gaza. The toll of the bloody attack by Hamas in Israel is already very heavy: 1,200 dead. On the Palestinian side, Israeli strikes caused more than 1,500 victims.