Israel: Palestinians to Go to 'Humanitarian Islands' Ahead of a Rafah Offensive

Facts

• The Israeli military said on Thursday that it had plans for displaced Palestinians to seek shelter on 'humanitarian islands' in the middle of the Gaza Strip in the event of an operation into Rafah, a Gaza city on the Egyptian border in which over 1.4M displaced Palestinians have taken refuge.¹
• This comes as US-based food aid charity World Central Kitchen with support from the Spanish nongovernmental organization Open Arms and the governments of Cyprus and the UAE announced that it hopes to send another ship loaded with over 300 tons of food aid for Gaza. The first ship left Larnaca on Tuesday.²
• The UN's main Palestinian refugee agency (UNRWA) — which Israel accuses of working with Hamas — said that an Israeli airstrike hit a food distribution center in Rafah, killing one staff member and wounding 22 others. UNRWA chief Philippe Lazzarini said attacks on its facilities had 'become commonplace.'³
• Also, the US said on Thursday that it was placing new sanctions on Israeli settlers in the West Bank targeting two illegal outposts that were reportedly used as a base for attacks by extremist settlers against Palestinian civilians. Three settlers also had sanctions placed on them.⁴
• Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich criticized the new sanctions, arguing that the US wanted to forcefully establish a Palestinian state and that the Israeli government would continue its support for the settlers.⁵
• In addition, South Africa's Foreign Minister announced on Wednesday that any duel South African-Israeli citizens who fight in the Israeli armed forces or alongside them in Gaza will be arrested when they return home. South Africa has accused Israel of genocide in international court, which Israel denies.⁶

Sources: ¹BBC News (a), ²CNN, ³BBC News (b), ⁴Axios, ⁵The Times of Israel and ⁶Associated Press.

Narratives

• Pro-Palestine narrative, as provided by Truthout. Israel is purposefully creating a famine in Gaza at a rate unprecedented in the post-WWII era. Israeli forces have been blocking food, water, and other necessities from entering Gaza since the war began, and have intensified those efforts to facilitate a horrific and dehumanizing situation for Palestinians, with people being forced to drink contaminated water and eat whatever they can find, including grass and moldy potatoes. This level of cruelty is simply unfathomable, and Israel must be held accountable for these atrocious crimes.
• Pro-Israel narrative, as provided by Jerusalem Post. Regardless of the fallacies reported in the media, at every step of the way, Israel has made extraordinary efforts to spare civilians the brunt of its military might. The UN — which has consistently demonstrated its anti-Israel bias — and its incompetence are the primary cause of the current food shortages in Gaza, which will hopefully be remedied soon. Indeed, Israel keeps facilitating more and more ways to get aid into Gaza, directly hindering its war effort, yet critics — who have completely forgotten Hamas' atrocities on Oct. 7 — refuse to treat Israel fairly.
• Pro-establishment narrative, as provided by NBC. Israel must be able to defend itself from terrorist attacks from Gaza or elsewhere, and the US is committed to preventing malicious actors from threatening Israel's legitimate concerns. However, the Biden admin. is losing its patience with Netanyahu's intransigence. The humanitarian situation in Gaza is rapidly getting out of hand, and the situation must be remedied. The Biden admin. is committed to ensuring the safety and well-being of Palestinian civilians and is now taking its own steps to alleviate this dreadful situation.

Predictions