Israeli prime minister Binyamin Netanyahu said this week that Israel intends to maintain a presence in the Philadelphi corridor on the southern edge of Gaza, bordering Egypt. Israel’s control of the corridor is one of the main sticking points in reaching a ceasefire deal with Hamas.
While refusing to propose a postwar plan for governing Gaza, Mr Netanyahu has pre-empted international and Arab proposals by ordering the army to handle aid, which strengthens Israel’s grip within the Strip.
Ahead of any ceasefire deal, the Israeli military has appointed brigadier general Elad Goren to manage aid efforts and the affairs of 2.3 million Palestinians during and after the war. His post is “head of humanitarian-civilian efforts in the Gaza Strip”. According to Israeli daily Yedioth Ahronoth, Mr Goren is responsible for the return of one million displaced Palestinians to the north of the Strip. He is also responsible for reconstruction and aid deliveries.
The army announced that Mr Goren will “deal with the integration and implementation of the humanitarian effort in the Gaza Strip and the co-ordination with the international community, in a way that will allow the implementation of the humanitarian effort while upholding the security interests of the State of Israel.”
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These interests would be secured by continuing the fighting to achieve “the goals of the war” which Mr Netanyahu has defined as eliminating Hamas, rescuing Israel’s hostages, and ensuring Gaza can no longer pose a threat to Israel.
Humanitarian law consultant Itay Epshtain, who is a special adviser to the Norwegian Refugee Council, posted on X: “So we go back to Brig Gen Goren, is he there to facilitate humanitarian relief or is he there to ensure that Gaza will forever be ruled by Israel, forestalling Palestinian sovereignty? The answer being the latter, the [International Court of Justice Opinion] dictates that such acts are systematic and gross violations of international law.”
The International Court of Justice has said that Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territories and settlements is illegal and should be ended as soon as possible.
In a second X posting, Mr Epshtain pointed out that Goren reports to minister in the defence ministry and finance minister Bezalel Smotrich. The minister is a West Bank settler who heads the Religious Zionism party and advocates Israeli resettlement of Gaza.
Despite Israeli opposition, the US, Egypt, and Qatar have urged the West Bank-based Palestinian Authority to govern postwar Gaza and have proposed a pan-Arab force to impose and maintain security. Palestinians prefer a national government, including Hamas and other factions, under the umbrella of a reformed West Bank Palestinian Authority. Such a government would administer both the West Bank and Gaza.
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