Jan Egeland, the Secretary-General of the Norwegian Refugee Council, has strongly criticized Israel’s order to forcibly evacuate over a million Palestinians from northern Gaza, labeling it as a “war crime.” In an interview with Sky News, Egeland called on Western and Arab countries to exert pressure on Israel to revoke the order, stating that it violates international humanitarian law by forcibly transferring populations without any assurance of their return.
Egeland expressed his outrage at the situation, emphasizing that the order lacks a genuine promise for the displaced Palestinians to regain their homes. He stressed that such actions flagrantly violate international humanitarian law and should be recognized as war crimes.
In response to the recent escalation, the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) announced that they conducted an airstrike targeting the militant group Hezbollah in southern Lebanon. The IDF stated that the strike was in retaliation for the infiltration of unidentified aerial objects into Israel and an attack on an IDF unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV).
Israeli forces have also carried out raids in the Gaza Strip, uncovering human remains of individuals who had been missing since Hamas’s attack last weekend. Local media reports indicate that armed forces entered an enclave where it was suspected that up to 200 people were being held hostage by Hamas. The bodies of several individuals were recovered, along with personal belongings of the missing people.
The UN humanitarian office OCHA estimates that tens of thousands of people in Gaza have fled south following Israel’s evacuation order. Prior to the order, more than 400,000 Palestinians had already been internally displaced within Gaza. The situation remains perilous for those fleeing, as Israel continues its air raids across the territory.
The foreign ministry of Kuwait released a statement categorically rejecting the forced evacuation order issued against Palestinian residents in the northern area of the Gaza Strip. The statement comes as many Palestinians in Gaza’s north scramble to leave their homes in anticipation of a possible Israeli ground invasion. Kuwait expressed concern for the safety and well-being of the affected Palestinians.
Saudi Arabia has also voiced strong opposition to the ongoing Israeli bombardment in Gaza, particularly the targeting of civilians. Saudi Arabia’s Foreign Minister, Faisal bin Farhan Al-Saud, conveyed this stance during a phone call with his British counterpart, James Cleverly. The Kingdom called for an immediate cessation of the military escalation and the lifting of the siege in Gaza. Bin Farhan Al-Saud emphasized the importance of implementing resolutions on the Palestinian issue in accordance with previous peace agreements.
These recent developments underscore the growing international concern over the situation in Gaza, with calls for an end to the violence and a renewed focus on finding peaceful resolutions to the longstanding Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
