Israeli NGOs Implore World Governments to Prevent Ethnic Cleansing of Northern Gaza

A coalition of Israeli human rights organizations issued a joint statement Monday imploring governments and institutions worldwide to "use all tools at their disposal—legal, diplomatic and economic—to prevent" Israel's far-right government from carrying out a proposed ethnic cleansing plan in northern Gaza.

B'Tselem, Gisha, Yesh Din, and Physicians for Human Rights Israel called on "the international community to take action now to prevent Israel from forcibly transferring hundreds of thousands of Palestinians who have remained in the Northern Gaza Strip outside of the area, including by denying entry of essential humanitarian aid and fuel."

"There are alarming signs that the Israeli military is beginning to quietly implement the Generals' Plan, also referred to as the Eiland Plan, which calls for complete forcible transfer of the civilians of the northern Gaza Strip through tightening the siege on the area and starving the population," the groups said. "States have an obligation to prevent the crimes of starvation and forcible transfer, and that if the continuation of the 'wait and see' approach will enable Israel to liquidate northern Gaza, they will be complicit."

The Israeli groups' statement came as their nation's government, led by far-right Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, weighed a plan put forth by a group of retired generals. The plan, according to The Associated Press, would give the hundreds of thousands of Palestinians trapped in northern Gaza a week to leave the region.

"Those who remain would be considered combatants—meaning military regulations would allow troops to kill them—and denied food, water, medicine, and fuel," AP reported over the weekend. The Israeli newspaper Haaretz separately reported that Israel's "political leadership is pushing for the gradual annexation of large parts of the Gaza Strip."

The Israeli military is already effectively carrying out part of the retired generals' proposal by cutting off northern Gaza from humanitarian aid. According to the United Nations, no food has been able to enter the famine-stricken area since October 1.

Israeli forces have also killed dozens of people in attacks on the Jabalia refugee camp and other nearby areas, including a food distribution center. Residents who have attempted to flee have reported being fired on by Israeli soldiers and drones.

"Israeli authorities have increasingly cut off northern Gaza from essential supplies," Muhannad Hadi, the United Nations' humanitarian coordinator for the occupied Palestinian territory, said in a statement. "Erez and Erez West crossings have been kept closed, and no essentials have been allowed from the south."

On Monday, the U.N. Human Rights Office said it is "appalled by Israel's continued bombing and other attacks on parts of North Gaza, where its forces have trapped tens of thousands of Palestinians, including civilians, in their homes and shelters with no access to food or other life-sustaining necessities."

"In the shadow of the escalation of hostilities across the Middle East, the Israeli military appears to be cutting off North Gaza completely from the rest of the Gaza Strip and conducting hostilities with absolute disregard for the lives and security of Palestinian civilians," the office continued. "The separation of North Gaza raises further concerns that Israel does not intend to allow civilians to return to their homes, and the repeated calls for all Palestinians to leave northern Gaza raise grave concerns of large-scale forced transfer of the civilian population."

Forcible transfer is a crime against humanity under international law.