Gaza Strip

Israeli army prepares for “voluntary departure”

(Bild: APA/AFP/Omar AL-QATTAA)

While US President Donald Trump is offending the international community with his plan to "take over" and rebuild the Gaza Strip, the Israeli army is already preparing for the "voluntary departure" of Palestinians.

Israel's Defense Minister Israel Katz explained: The plan should "enable all Gaza residents who want to leave to do so" and "to any country that wants to take them in". The plan will allow them to leave via border crossings as well as "special arrangements for departure by sea and air".

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is currently in the USA.(Bild: Getty Images via AFP/GETTY IMAGES/CHIP SOMODEVILLA)

Trump wants the inhabitants of the area to be accommodated in other Arab states in the region in future. Trump described the move as "resettlement". Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke out in favor of implementing the proposal on US broadcaster "Fox News". "The very idea of allowing Gaza residents who want to leave to leave. I mean, what's wrong with that? They can leave, they can then come back, they can move and come back. But you have to rebuild Gaza," Netanyahu said. Trump's idea should be pursued and implemented.

Israel has so far banned people from leaving the Gaza Strip
Israel's far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich praised the Defense Minister's order. He welcomed Katz's decision to instruct the army to "prepare for the implementation of our role in the migration plan and to facilitate the departure of people from the Gaza Strip to host countries", he explained. 

Until now, Israel has banned Palestinians from leaving the Gaza Strip at all. The only border crossing with Egypt is currently only open for the evacuation of a small number of injured people. In his statement, Defense Minister Katz initially left open whether Palestinians will also be able to leave the Gaza Strip via Israel. The only airport in the Gaza Strip was destroyed in the early 2000s, and the Palestinian territory has no port for the transportation of passengers. 

Trump's cabinet rows back
Following fierce international criticism of Trump's plans for the future of the Gaza Strip, the government in Washington attempted to calm the waves. "This was not meant to be a hostile move," said US Secretary of State Marco Rubio during a visit to Guatemala. On the contrary, he spoke of a "very generous offer". Rubio explained that the USA was only interested in making the coastal area habitable again. However, the Palestinians would not be able to live there during this time.