Israel Threatens to Empty Gaza if Hamas takes hostages again

“ If even an Israeli soldier or civilian is kidnapped, Gaza City will be evacuated and emptied of its million inhabitants,” said Israel Katz at a ceremony in memory of the 1973 Yom Kippur War (Arab-Israelite Fourth War).

Forced displacement of a civilian population can constitute a war crime under international law.

Gaza City had about 700,000 inhabitants before the start of the war caused by Hamas’ terrorist attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, in which some 1,200 people were killed and more than two hundred were taken hostage.

In his speech, Israel Katz linked its threat to “several intelligence reports,” but did not specify the information in question.

“In the light of several intelligence reports, I warn the terrorist organization and its supporters from Iran to Erdogan: if a single Israeli soldier or civilian is abducted, the entire Gaza Strip (...) will be evacuated with more than one million inhabitants,” he reiterated.

In addition, Katz stated that Israeli troops will not withdraw from the so-called Yellow Line, the perimeter behind which they are positioned in Gaza, until Hamas “be overthrown” and the territory is “demilitarized, clean of weapons and tunnels”.

Since the beginning of the war, it is estimated that Israeli attacks have devastated approximately 80% of the Gaza Strip, leaving thousands of displaced and forced to live in tents or houses with a precarious structure.

According to the latest Gaza Ministry of Health, Israeli troops have killed 73,719 people since the offensive began, 1,399 of them since the ceasefire came into force almost a year ago.

Despite the truce, Israel launches daily attacks in Gaza that cause deaths, sometimes using drones to target specific sites, which usually assigns to alleged Hamas members, but who often also kill women and children.