Dr. Omar Rahhal: Targeting hospitals in northern Gaza to force citizens to emigrate and to establish a buffer zone that could turn into settlements

Hani Abu Al-Sabaa: The occupation resorts to killing children as part of the theory of deterrence and shock and efforts to establish military rule in the region

Adnan Al-Sabah: Evacuating hospitals aims to force the residents of northern Gaza to flee by eliminating any necessities of life

Firas Yaghi: Israel's killing of children is a systematic policy aimed at affecting the demographic balance in the future

Dr. Raed Abu Badawiya: Regional and international circumstances encouraged the occupation government to implement the plan to control northern Gaza

Dr. Ahmed Rafiq Awad: Targeting hospitals in northern Gaza reflects an Israeli policy of destroying cities as in ancient times

Nizar Nazzal: Bombing hospitals and killing children is part of a clear strategy to eliminate life in northern Gaza

Israel did not stop at bombing homes and schools in the Gaza Strip, especially in the north of the Strip, but it also bombed and targeted hospitals and killed children, as part of a policy of displacement and destruction of the infrastructure and necessities of life for future generations.

According to a number of writers, political analysts, academics and specialists who spoke to “I”, what Israel is doing is part of a plan that seeks to empty northern Gaza of its residents with the aim of creating a buffer zone, where Israel is targeting hospitals and health facilities to push civilians towards migration. These operations are considered part of a broader plan to establish a depopulated area that may later turn into Israeli settlements.

They point out that targeting hospitals with bombing and destruction creates a tragic situation through which Israel seeks to push citizens to make the decision to emigrate to protect their children and escape death, noting at the same time that children are being targeted for killing as part of a strategy targeting future generations, calling for international action to protect hospitals, as their protection is a duty under international humanitarian law and the Geneva Conventions.

New plan includes establishing a buffer zone in northern Gaza

Dr. Omar Rahhal, writer, political analyst and director of the Shams Center for Human Rights, believes that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, from the first moment of the aggression on Gaza, has failed miserably in implementing the planned displacement plan. In light of the failure to achieve the declared goals of the war, Netanyahu is currently seeking to implement a new plan that includes establishing a buffer zone in northern Gaza, which reflects the orientations of the Israeli “generals’ plan” aimed at making this area empty of residents.

Rahhal explains that there are conferences currently being held to discuss settlement in northern Gaza, and that all of these developments indicate the idea of increasing displacement.

Rahhal believes that targeting hospitals, including shelling, storming and besieging, is a clear step towards achieving this displacement, which puts pressure on civilians who seek refuge in these facilities in search of safety.

Rahhal believes that there is a close connection between targeting hospitals and forced displacement, as the original plan aimed to displace Palestinians outside the Strip, and when these attempts failed, the occupation resorted to the strategy of displacing Palestinians and evacuating the northern region of its residents to create a buffer zone that may turn into settlements in the future.

Demand for international protection for hospitals

Rahhal calls on the High Contracting States to the Geneva Conventions to take immediate action to protect Palestinian hospitals from the attacks of the Israeli occupation army, considering their protection a duty under international humanitarian law, based on the Hague Convention on the Laws and Customs of War on Land of 1907, especially Article No. (27), and also the First Geneva Convention of 1949, especially Article No. (19) and Article No. (24), and also the Fourth Geneva Convention of 1949, especially Article No. (18), and also the Rome Statute establishing the International Criminal Court of 1998, especially Article No. (8), and the United Nations General Assembly Resolution No. (2675) of 1970.

Rahhal calls on the World Health Organization, the International Red Cross, the doctors' unions in Arab and Islamic countries, and the Palestinian Doctors' Union to take immediate action to protect hospitals in the northern Gaza Strip from targeting.

Rahhal calls on the Palestinian Authority to move towards the UN Security Council to pressure to prevent attacks on health facilities, holding the international and Arab community responsible for protecting civilians in light of the ongoing military escalation.

Killing children as part of a racist ideology based on annihilation

In a related context, Rahhal points out that targeting and killing children falls within an extremist religious belief with a racist character, where instructions are given to kill and expel the population, including children, the elderly, and women.

Rahhal explains that there is a demographic vision that dominates Israeli policy towards Gaza, based on the logic of annihilation, which makes killing children part of a deliberate strategy.

Rahhal points out that Netanyahu and his supporters in the War Council believe that the deportation of the citizens of the northern Gaza Strip may provide security for the settlers in the Gaza envelope. Netanyahu also shows through these measures that he has achieved the war’s goals related to the displacement and uprooting of the Palestinians from their lands, which is intended to close any discussion about future political settlements related to the borders so that the controlled lands are within the framework of annexation to the Israeli occupation state.

Rahhal explains that these measures constitute forced annexation, as the Israeli government seeks to consider these areas as “no-man’s land” that is not subject to negotiation, paving the way for their annexation in a devious manner.

These events, according to Rahhal, are part of a comprehensive strategy that seeks to strengthen Israeli control over the Palestinian territories, amid an unprecedented escalation against civilians.

The occupation seeks to establish a military rule

The writer, political analyst and specialist in Israeli affairs, Hani Abu Al-Sabaa, explains that the Israeli occupation army is currently carrying out evacuation operations from hospitals in the northern Gaza Strip, in a serious attempt to eliminate the signs of steadfastness and break the morale of the residents in order to force them to voluntarily leave.

Abu Al-Sabaa believes that these measures come within the framework of the occupation's efforts to impose its plans to establish military rule in the region after what it calls "cleansing the region of militants."

Abu Al-Sabaa points out that the Israeli army commits crimes against medical crews, whether they are inside hospitals or working within ambulance and rescue teams.

Despite the appeals and calls to spare hospitals from bombing, and to allow the entry of medical supplies and fuel, Abu Al-Sabaa confirms that the occupation insists on implementing its plans to empty hospitals of patients and workers under the pretext of the presence of armed men in their corridors.

Abu Al-Sabaa believes that storming hospitals has become a habit that the occupation has adopted during the war, pointing to the events at Al-Shifa Hospital as a clear example of this.

On the other hand, Abu Al-Sabaa believes that the occupation resorts to killing children in all ways as part of the theory of deterrence and shock, which establishes a state of terror and fear in the consciousness of citizens, with the aim of breaking the popular incubator and preventing them from thinking about repeating the events of October 7.

In a related context, Abu Al-Saba’ refers to the occupation’s attempts to forcibly displace the population, as long lines of civilians deprived of rights appear, in a scene reminiscent of the events of the Nakba and the Naksa.

Calls for a new mass migration of the Palestinian people

Abu Al-Sabaa points out that there are calls to implement a new mass migration against the Palestinian people, as Israel seeks to transfer the residents of northern Gaza to the center and south, while returning to settlement in the Strip.

Abu Al-Sabaa quotes Ben-Gurion, one of the founders of Israel, who said: “Israel must strike its enemies with excessive force, to shock them for generations to come and force them to accept its terms.”

Meanwhile, Abu Al-Sabaa calls on the Palestinian Authority to knock on all doors to stop these plans.

Abu Al-Sabaa stresses the importance of exploiting the current opportunity, in light of talk about political solutions and international conferences to stop the war.

He points out that there is now a greater opportunity than ever to stop the aggression, especially after Israel's response to the Iranian bombing and the proximity of the US elections.

Abu Al-Sabaa stresses the urgent need for international action to stop these massacres and protect civilians in light of the escalating events.

Systematic tactic of targeting civilians, especially children

Writer and political analyst Adnan Al-Sabah believes that the Israeli occupation seeks to carry out a complete evacuation of the residents of the northern Gaza Strip, and this is clearly evident through its targeting of hospitals, which represent one of the most prominent tools of life and vital symbols in those areas.

Evacuating hospitals, according to Al-Sabah, carries strong implications aimed at forcing residents towards forced displacement and eliminating any elements of life in the northern Gaza Strip, in an attempt to tighten the noose on the people of Gaza and push them to emigrate.

Al-Sabah points out that the occupation adopts a systematic tactic in targeting civilians, especially children, with the aim of raising the anxiety of families and pushing them to make automatic humanitarian decisions because of their children, so that the emotions of fatherhood and motherhood are exploited as a tool of pressure on the population.

Al-Sabah believes that the ongoing attacks on children and hospitals are part of a broader strategy to break morale and create a state of terror and panic among the residents, such that displacement becomes the only option for them to protect their children, which is one of the occupation’s tools to push them away from their homes and lands.

Pressure on the southern Gaza Strip and increase its economic and living burdens

Al-Sabah points out that Israel's undeclared goal may be to put pressure on the southern Gaza Strip, as the movement of the northern population to the south will increase the economic and living burdens in those areas, which may affect the ability of the Palestinian resistance and weaken its cohesion through unprecedented pressure on its popular base.

This scenario, according to Al-Sabah, may later push Israel to move towards requesting the evacuation of the residents of the south as well, which would make the displacement process a continuous tool to pressure the resistance and break it and break the will of the people.

Israel may designate those remaining in the north as "resistance targets"

On the other hand, Al-Sabah sees another scenario, which is that Israel may place those remaining in northern Gaza within the category of “resistance targets,” which means that they will face direct persecution and targeting by the occupation on the grounds that they are resistance fighters, even if they had no connection.

Al-Sabah does not rule out that these steps may be related to broader Israeli plans that seek to reshape the demographic map of Gaza, and perhaps prepare for settlement projects or expand the scope of control in those areas.

Formation of a government of national accord

Under these circumstances, Al-Sabah stresses that the only way to confront these plans is Palestinian national unity, through the formation of a national consensus government that includes all Palestinian political factions, and is based on a unified political program through which real pressure can be exerted on the occupation through comprehensive international action.

Al-Sabah believes that this national unity is the best way to stop the Israeli plans, confront the occupation’s expansionist and settlement policies, and confront what he describes as the “ongoing killing” of the Palestinian people.

Preparing the atmosphere to expel the people of the north and control it

Writer and political analyst Firas Yaghi believes that the Israeli occupation’s evacuation of hospitals and health facilities in the northern Gaza Strip reflects a clear Israeli intention to transform this area into an uninhabitable area, thus preparing the ground for the expulsion of its residents and complete control over it.

Yaghi points out that the presence of hospitals means the presence of residents and the continuity of life, which are things that Israel does not want to see in the northern Gaza Strip, which justifies its policy of targeting and destroying medical facilities and public services in those areas.

Regarding Israel’s targeting of Palestinian children, Yaghi believes that this reflects its fears of Palestinian demographic growth, and that targeting children is not merely an incidental product of war, but rather a systematic policy that aims to affect the demographic balance in the future by killing an entire generation of Palestinians.

Yaghi believes that killing children weakens Palestinian society in the long run and hinders its reproduction and growth, which confirms the deliberate policy of targeting women and children, as women represent the main pillar of fertility and population growth in Palestinian society.

As for the forced displacement policies, Yaghi explains that they are in line with the occupation’s efforts to impose control over the northern Gaza Strip, pointing out that the steadfastness of the Palestinian people in Jabalia and their refusal to be displaced prompted Israel to intensify the use of military force and systematic pressure through air and ground bombardment.

But Yaghi points out that the current displacement operations aim to move the population to nearby areas within the Strip, with a clear Israeli intention to expel them completely from northern Gaza, including Gaza City itself, as Israel sees this as the only way to achieve complete success for its strategy of control and settlement there.

Yaghi stressed the need for the international and Arab community to intervene urgently, calling on the Arab League and the Palestine Liberation Organization to take a more firm stance by pressing for an immediate meeting of the UN Security Council and General Assembly to discuss the crimes being committed in northern Gaza.

Yaghi points out the importance of keeping the issue of the northern Gaza Strip present in the media and at the level of international relations, while stressing the need for the official Arab regime to move immediately to stop the "massacre" and confront the attempts at "ethnic cleansing" being practiced there.

Preparing for new settlement policies in the Gaza Strip

Yaghi explains that Israel wants to impose its control by force, as he points out that US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken asked Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu about implementing the generals’ plan in northern Gaza, but Netanyahu denied the matter and refused to announce it, which indicates an Israeli evasion that it is actually doing.

Yaghi points out that Netanyahu’s statements and the plans of the ruling Israeli right are based on the idea of future settlement in the northern Gaza Strip, pointing to a recent conference on settlement in Gaza attended by a number of Likud party members, including extremist figures such as Netanyahu’s government ministers Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich, which reinforces fears that the displacement of Palestinians may be a prelude to new settlement policies in the Strip.

Creating a repulsive environment that forces citizens to cross Egyptian territory

Dr. Raed Abu Badawiya, Professor of International Law and International Relations at the Arab American University, explains that the recent Israeli escalation in the Gaza Strip is due to a plan that Israel has been developing since October 7 of last year, where some Israeli politicians called for the displacement of Gaza residents by pressuring the residents in the north to push them towards the south, and then creating a repellent environment that would force them to cross into Egyptian territory.

Abu Badawiya points out that this plan faced opposition from some regional powers, most notably Egypt and Jordan, in addition to widespread American and European rejection of this approach, which was considered a forced displacement of Palestinians from the Strip.

Abu Badawiya points out that this plan has now turned into a phased plan implemented by Israel in an initial phase that aims to evacuate northern Gaza, specifically near the Netzarim axis, by escalating the bombing operations and calling on the population to move south. Recent weeks have witnessed a sharp escalation in targeting civilians, as Israel has resorted to carrying out massacres that targeted children, schools, displacement sites and hospitals, creating a state of panic similar to the method of displacement it followed in the Nakba in 1948, thus forcing people to leave.

Imposing military and security control in the north

Abu Badawiya explains that the occupation seeks, through these operations, to impose military and security control in the northern Gaza Strip, with a political intention to settle the area in the future, and although talk of settlement is still early, it is possible.

Abu Badawiya believes that regional and international circumstances have encouraged Israel to implement these plans, especially in light of the international inability to stop the massacres against the Palestinians, in addition to the undeclared support from some Western and American countries, whether through military or intelligence support.

Abu Badawiya points out that there are also some Arab countries that have been satisfied with political statements without taking practical steps, and some of them have even expressed implicit agreement with the Israeli aggression, especially with regard to their position on the Hamas movement and its rule in Gaza and its elimination.

According to Abu Badawiya, these factors combined are reasons for strengthening Israel's ability to continue its displacement and expansion project in the northern Gaza Strip, and even extend it to the West Bank.

The necessity of ending the internal division as soon as possible

Regarding how the Palestinians can confront this aggression, Abu Badawiya stresses the need to end the internal division as soon as possible, in order to unify the Palestinian ranks and present a strong position against the Israeli plans.

Abu Badawiya stresses that the continuation of the division weakens the Palestinian internal front, and that unity has become necessary to prevent the occupation from imposing a fait accompli, whether in Gaza or the West Bank.

Abu Badawiya stresses the importance of Palestinian action on the regional and international levels, pointing to the possibility of benefiting from friendly countries in the region such as Turkey and Iran, in addition to pressure in international, diplomatic and judicial institutions to stop Israeli plans against civilians in Gaza.

Abu Badawiya points to the need for a Palestinian political program that is in line with developments on the ground, especially after the end of the aggression, as any attempts to impose political settlements that take into account the facts imposed by the occupation must be rejected.

But Abu Badawiya wonders about the Palestinians’ readiness to deal with possible occupation scenarios, explaining that the current situation requires a strong and comprehensive response to confront the dangers that threaten the future of the Palestinian cause, especially the Gaza Strip and the West Bank.

A double crime that affects the foundations of civil life

Writer and political analyst Dr. Ahmed Rafiq Awad explains that targeting hospitals in the Gaza Strip, especially in the north, is a double crime whose direct damage extends to one of the foundations of civil society as a whole.

Awad points out that basic institutions such as hospitals, schools, places of worship, and police stations are key landmarks in building urban and civil society, and that attacking these institutions reflects a systematic Israeli policy that aims to destroy cities as in ancient times and turn them into uninhabitable places, by demolishing the social structure and spreading chaos.

Awad believes that bombing hospitals and expelling patients and citizens from them is not only intended to cause direct harm, but also seeks to deepen the suffering of the population by spreading disease and death, and to show Israel as a brutal force that transcends all humanitarian and moral lines.

Awad points out that targeting Kamal Adwan Hospital for the fourteenth time reflects Israel's clear desire to eliminate everything related to civilian life in the northern Gaza Strip, empty the city of its civilized components, and weaken its infrastructure, making the continuation of life there almost impossible.

Awad believes that this targeting is not random, but rather part of a comprehensive Israeli policy aimed at forcibly displacing the population and turning the northern Gaza Strip into a buffer zone, an investment zone, or even a crossroads that serves Israeli settlement interests.

Awad asserts that the evacuation of hospitals, schools, and civil institutions is in reality an “attack on the idea of the city” itself, and on the foundations of civil life, in an attempt to dismantle population centers and make them areas devoid of any urban components.

Killing children is part of a deliberate policy of genocide.

On the other hand, Awad stresses that the killing of children, which Israel practices on a daily basis, represents part of a deliberate policy of genocide.

Awad explains that children here play a central role in this scheme, as killing them is seen as a way to reduce the number of Palestinians and ensure that a new generation that can resist the occupation does not emerge.

Awad cites a statement by Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Galant, who indicated that the attack on Gaza would affect several Palestinian generations.

Awad explains that this attack on children comes in the context of genocide and the reduction of the Palestinian presence, through killing children and preventing their numbers from increasing.

Awad stresses that these Israeli policies, which also aim to prevent the establishment of a Palestinian state, have regional and international dimensions that cannot be ignored, as they constitute a direct threat to Arab national security.

Awad stresses that the response to these violations should not be limited to the Palestinians alone, but should include serious and real Arab action.

Awad explains that the collapse of the idea of a Palestinian state will not only affect the Palestinians, but will threaten the stability of the entire region, which requires an Arab response to protect common national security.

International institutions have proven their weakness.

Awad believes that the international community needs a more effective role, as international institutions have proven their weakness in confronting the ongoing Israeli violations. He expressed his concern about the position of the United States and the European Union in support of Israel, warning that this bias poses a threat to the stability of the region and fuels the state of tension.

Awad explains that the continuation of this support may be paid for by the West itself, especially with the presence of Arab and Islamic communities in the United States and Europe that may be affected by the violations occurring in the Gaza Strip.

Awad stresses that confronting these policies requires comprehensive Palestinian unity at the popular and official levels, in addition to broad Arab and international support, to stop these massacres and protect the Palestinian presence in the Gaza Strip.

Medical institutions at the heart of the fierce confrontation

Nizar Nazzal, a researcher specializing in Israeli affairs and conflict issues, believes that targeting hospitals in the Gaza Strip, especially in the north, represents an unprecedented escalation that places medical institutions at the heart of the fierce confrontation against the Palestinian people.

Nazzal explains that this targeting of hospitals and killing of children is not just an accident, but rather comes within a clear strategy aimed at eliminating and burying life in this specific geographical area, in order to force citizens to leave and empty northern Gaza of its residents.

Nazzal points out that Israel seeks to destroy all aspects of life in northern Gaza, in order to make the area uninhabitable and push citizens to consider forced migration, which would make it easier for Israel to annex the lands and establish settlement plans there.

Nazzal asserts that "targeting hospitals is part of a system that aims to weaken the Palestinians' ability to withstand," stressing that "Israel is continuing with its project that leaves no room for Palestinian citizens to endure."

Nazzal explains that this Israeli policy towards the Gaza Strip is not limited to hospitals alone, but also includes schools, streets, and basic infrastructure, which means comprehensive attempts to eradicate the necessities of life.

Although hospitals are special due to their direct connection to the daily lives of Palestinians and their urgent health needs, Nazzal believes that the Israeli plan is moving forward to erase everything that might contribute to strengthening the steadfastness of the Palestinians.

"prolonged social conflict"

Nazzal explains that these harsh criminal practices fall within the concept of “extended social conflict,” a theory in conflict science developed by a Lebanese thinker that refers to an approach that aims to completely destroy the other society and eliminate its existence completely in order to resolve the conflict once and for all. Nazzal considers this type of conflict to be one of the most bloody and fierce in the world.

Nazzal points out that Israel does not hesitate to target children, women and the elderly, in scenes that show field executions, in addition to separating families in squares based on religious and ideological pretexts.

Old Israeli project renewed in the midst of war

Nazzal describes these deliberate attacks as attempts to deepen the suffering of the Palestinians and inflict as much pain as possible, pointing out that the ultimate Israeli goal is to push the population to emigrate from the area, as part of the policy of forced displacement, which Nazzal explains is an extension of an old Israeli project that is being renewed today in the midst of this war.

Nazzal believes that the forced displacement that Israel seeks to achieve through its control over the northern Gaza Strip aims to create the appropriate conditions for future Israeli settlement.

Nazzal links these policies to the “generals’ plan” that Israel cannot implement without getting rid of the Palestinian population, noting that there is talk circulating about building five large settlements in the northern Gaza Strip.

Nazzal explains that targeting northern Gaza is not in vain, as he believes that this area represents, from an Israeli perspective, a starting point for Palestinian resistance fighters, which makes it a retaliatory target for evacuating residents in preparation for future settlement plans.

Despite this plan, Nazzal points out that there are factors that hinder Israel from implementing its forced displacement policy in Gaza, stressing that Palestinian steadfastness represents a major obstacle to these plans, saying: “The legendary steadfastness of the Palestinians has become part of history,” stressing that this strength of steadfastness may prevent Israel from expanding beyond the Netzarim axis towards the south.

Nazzal believes that Israel is exploiting the ongoing war since October 7 as an opportunity to implement this long-term plan.

Nazzal says: “Israeli displacement policies are not new, but today they find fertile ground to restore and implement them under the cover of the current conflict,” considering that what is happening today in Gaza is reproducing old scenarios that aim to empty the land of its people in favor of settlement.

Regarding the means that must be followed to confront these Israeli policies, Nazzal calls for the formation of a unified Palestinian leadership that brings together all Palestinian factions and components, stressing the importance of presenting a clear vision to the world and to international allies and friends, to uncover and expose these Israeli projects that are being implemented openly in the twenty-first century.

Nazzal stresses the importance of forming international alliances to confront these massacres, especially in light of the rise of new global powers that could change the balance of power, which requires effective international action from the Palestinians to pressure Israel and stop these massacres against the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.

Nazzal believes that international action in the face of this tragic situation for the Palestinians has become an absolute necessity, pointing out that the Palestinian leadership must move through international institutions, including the United Nations, to support the Palestinians’ right, even if it is a small part of their historical rights.