Israel’s Gaza ‘Plan’ Signals Ethnic Cleansing and Genocide, Critics Warn
Israel’s far-right government has unveiled a controversial plan for Gaza that experts warn could accelerate ethnic cleansing and entrench a genocidal campaign against Palestinians.
Approved by Israel’s security cabinet, the strategy, dubbed Operation Gideon’s Chariots, aims to seize and hold Gaza’s territories while forcibly displacing its population.
What the Plan Entails
The plan involves expelling hundreds of thousands of Palestinians from northern Gaza into six southern encampments, where they will be confined and dependent on aid distributed by private U.S. security firms, Safe Reach Solutions and UG Solutions.
Israel claims food will be provided, but access will be tightly controlled using facial recognition to exclude anyone deemed a “Hamas operative” — a label Israel broadly applies to fighting-age males.
According to The Washington Post, 5,000 to 6,000 families per camp will rely on weekly food parcels collected from what Jan Egeland of the Norwegian Refugee Council called “concentration hubs.”
The fate of Gaza’s remaining 1.5 million people remains unclear.
Humanitarian and Legal Concerns
UN agencies and experts have denounced the plan as impractical and a violation of humanitarian principles.
“Gaza is, and must remain, an integral part of a future Palestinian state,” said UN spokesman Farhan Haq, echoing Secretary-General Antonio Guterres’ alarm that the plan “will inevitably lead to countless more civilians killed and the further destruction of Gaza.”
Legal scholar Heidi Matthews warned:
Voices from Gaza
Palestinians expressed despair and defiance. “If there is a plan to expand the war and reoccupy Gaza and repeat the displacement, why were we allowed to return to the north again?” asked Noor Ayash, 31.
Mahmoud al-Nabahin, 77, who lost his wife, daughter, and home, said, “[This] means nothing but our annihilation. We’ve lost all hope. Let him do whatever he wants.”
Israel’s Broader Intentions
Analysts argue the plan aligns with Israel’s long-term goal of destroying Gaza and eliminating its population.
Omar Rahman of the Middle East Council on Global Affairs said:
Israel has been telegraphing its real intentions from the start of this campaign: Destroy Gaza and eliminate its population both by starvation and mass killing.
Omar Rahman.
Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich’s vow that “Gaza will be entirely destroyed” and Palestinians will “leave in great numbers to third countries” underscores intentions of ethnic cleansing, especially as Egypt and Jordan reject hosting refugees.
Global Outrage and Uncertain Implementation
The international community has condemned Israel’s escalation.
The UK’s Hamish Falconer called any annexation attempt “unacceptable,” while Hamas labeled the aid framework “political blackmail.”
With Israel’s blockade starving Gaza since March 2, humanitarian officials warn of an impending catastrophe.
The involvement of U.S. security firms raises concerns of plausible deniability for potential abuses, as Israel’s reservists face fatigue and domestic opposition to the war grows.
Whether Israel can sustain this operation remains uncertain, but its impact on Gaza’s 2.3 million displaced people is already devastating.