"No expulsions"

Israel plans authority for departure from Gaza Strip

Refugees in the Gaza Strip (archive photo)(Bild: APA/AFP/Omar AL-QATTAA)

Following US President Donald Trump's initiative to take over the Gaza Strip, Israel is now planning a special authority for the "voluntary departure" of its residents. He is committed to "creating another Gaza Strip", said Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Defense Minister Israel Katz said on Monday that Trump's plan would be discussed in the cabinet. As reported, the US President wants to completely evacuate the destroyed Gaza Strip and turn it into a "Riviera of the Middle East". The 2.4 million Palestinians are to be resettled in countries such as Jordan and Egypt. The plan has met with rejection in the Arab world and among Western allies.

Irrespective of this, negotiations on the second phase of the ceasefire in the Gaza Strip with Hamas are to begin this week. This was announced by Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar in Jerusalem on Tuesday. The negotiations for the second phase should actually have begun on February 3.

What is being negotiated
In the current first phase, a total of 33 Israeli hostages are to be handed over in exchange for a significantly higher number of Palestinian prisoners. The second phase provides for the handover of all remaining hostages to Israel. A definitive end to the war is also to be achieved. Finally, the third phase will focus on reconstruction.

Saar reiterated that the Gaza Strip must be "completely demilitarized". Israel's government continues to strive for all war aims. A model like the one in Lebanon with Hezbollah, where the militia has to withdraw but the organization remains in place, is not acceptable. "We will not accept the continued presence of Hamas or any other terrorist group in the Gaza Strip."