Israel is creating a new military dividing line in Gaza, separating the far north of the Gaza Strip, according to satellite images studied by BBC Verify.
Troops are in control of an area spanning the entire width of northern Gaza and are in the process of evacuating this area. Satellite images and videos show that hundreds of buildings have been demolished between the Mediterranean Sea and the border with Israel, mainly by controlled explosions.
Images also show Israeli troops and vehicles stationed across the new divide. Analysts said the images suggest Gaza is being split into zones to make it easier to control.
An IDF spokesman told the BBC it was attacking “terrorist operatives and infrastructure” in northern Gaza.
Dr. HA Hellyer, a Middle East security expert at the Rusi think tank, said the satellite images suggested Israel was preparing to prevent Palestinian civilians from returning to North Gaza Governorate. According to the UN, more than 100,000 people have already been displaced from the far north of Gaza.
Images appear to show two long stretches of road on either side of the cleared strip, connected by cleared land through an urban area. Buildings are being demolished between the two road sections, with a clear pattern visible since the beginning of October.
This barrier extends approximately 9 km across Gaza, from east to west, dividing Gaza City and the towns of Jabalia, Beit Hanoun and Beit Lahia in northern Gaza.
The BBC has been told that there is a tactical route between Jabalia and Gaza City, which is part of the operational activities targeting Hamas in Jabalia.
Videos filmed by the IDF and posted online show several multi-story buildings destroyed by controlled explosions since early October.
The image below shows several examples geolocated by BBC Verify along the new corridor.
The BBC has geolocated the explosions to areas in the new corridor [BBC]
An IDF spokesperson told the BBC that it did not intend to destroy civilian infrastructure “without operational necessity” to neutralize Hamas.
Other footage shows IDF Humvee vehicles driving through the cleared area from the direction of Israel. Humvees are not as heavily armored as other military vehicles – and Dr Hellyer told the BBC that such vehicles were unlikely to be used unless the army had confidence in their safety, indicating that Israeli forces are in control of the area.
Some analysts believe that the IDF’s presence could signal a permanent military division, giving it control over who can travel between the Gaza governorates and the northern Gaza Strip.
Dr. Hellyer said of the IDF: “They are digging in for the long haul. I would absolutely expect the Northern Partition to develop exactly like the Netzarim Corridor.”
The BBC has previously documented how two partition walls have been built in Gaza since the start of the current war. The Netzarim Corridor – completed in May – divides the area south of Gaza City, while the Philadelphi Corridor gives the IDF control over land running along Gaza’s border with Egypt.
BBC analysis of this new separation in the north shows a pattern similar to the construction of the previous corridors over the past year, linking existing and newly constructed roads and creating military positions at regular intervals. Buildings and agricultural land are cleared so that roads can be paved and military infrastructure can be constructed.
Satellite images show the destruction of buildings in the new military gap [Google Earth/Planet Labs]
Dr. Eado Hecht of the Begin-Sadat Center for Strategic Studies (Besa), an Israeli think tank specializing in national security and foreign policy, agreed that the data showed a new dividing line, but questioned whether it was intended to be permanent. are.
“There is a new separation corridor separating Gaza City and the northern cities of the Gaza Strip. The aim is to cut off support and the ability to withdraw to Hamas forces – and those of other organizations – who have returned to that area, so that they can be dealt with more effectively.”
Israel has denied that it is implementing the “General Plan.” Under the strategy, devised by former general Giora EIland, civilians would be told to leave the north, supplies would be blocked and the area would become a military zone. Those who remained would be treated as fighters and faced with the choice of ‘surrender or starve’, with the aim of putting pressure on Hamas to release its hostages.
In a statement to the BBC, an IDF spokesperson said: “The IDF operates according to established military plans, and the claim that the IDF is implementing this specific plan is incorrect.”
But concerns have grown over the safety of the thousands of Palestinian civilians living in the besieged towns of northern Gaza.
The UN and aid organizations have expressed grave concerns about the situation in northern Gaza. Although thousands of people have been displaced, the UN says up to 60,000 people could remain in the area.
The UN also says that “virtually no aid” has entered North Gaza Governorate in 50 days. A spokesperson said that as a result of the blockade, Palestinians faced “critical shortages of supplies and services, as well as severe overcrowding and poor sanitary conditions.”
Earlier this month, a UN-backed assessment said there was a high likelihood of famine looming in besieged areas of northern Gaza.
A BBC analysis shows that about 90% of northern Gaza have been under evacuation orders since early October. Videos posted on social media document people being moved south of the new partition. It is not clear if or when they will be able to return, but Israel’s foreign minister has insisted that civilians will be allowed to return after the war.
Satellite images show the displacement of people in northern Gaza. Large groups of tents, set up as temporary shelter, disappear. Destroyed buildings and other examples of military activities can often be found in the area left behind.
Although the IDF appears to have gained enough control in the area to be able to travel in lightly armored vehicles, heavy fighting is also underway in the area between IDF forces and Hamas fighters.
Videos posted by Hamas fighters show clashes with IDF tanks in the area around the dividing line.
Experts disagree on how long the new partition should remain in place. Dr. Hellyer suggested that this could form the basis for a plan to permanently expel Palestinians from the area.
“Personally, I think they are going to settle Jewish settlers in the north, probably in the next 18 months,” he said. “They won’t call them settlements. To start with, they call them outposts or whatever, but they will remain that and they will grow from there.”
Israel’s far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich has said troops should occupy Gaza and “encourage” about half of Palestinian citizens to leave the area within two years.
But the Israeli government denies that it plans to build settlements in Gaza once the war is over, and Dr Hecht has dismissed such suggestions as nothing more than a “dream” for some ultranationalist ministers.
“All three corridors (Philadelphi in the south, Netzarim just south of Gaza City and the new one just north of Gaza City) are intended for control purposes,” Dr. Hecht said.
“The duration of their existence depends on when the war ends and how it ends.”
[BBC]
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