Concern about mass exodus
High concrete walls in the middle of the desert: Egypt is apparently building emergency camps for Palestinians
The Palestinians who fled to the city of Rafah after Israel’s attacks live in difficult conditions
© APAimages / Imago Images
Israel’s planned military offensive in Rafah is met with international criticism. Egypt fears a mass exodus of Palestinians. In this case, it is reportedly planning a reception camp in the desert.
For weeks, Egypt has been trying to increase security along the Gaza border with soldiers, fences and armored vehicles to prevent a rush of desperate Palestinians to the Sinai Peninsula. The planned camp is part of an emergency plan in the event that a large number of Palestinians manage to escape.
1.3 million people are on the border with Egypt
The governor of Egypt’s North Sinai region on Thursday denied early reports of the construction of a potential refugee camp for Palestinians, saying the activities in the area were part of an inventory of homes destroyed during Egypt’s past military campaign against Islamic State extremists in the area it was said.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu recently ordered his country’s military to present plans for an offensive in the southern Gaza town of Rafah, which borders Egypt, and for the evacuation of civilians there. It’s about destroying the last Hamas fighting units.
According to the UN, around 1.3 million people live in Rafah. Most fled there from other parts of the Gaza Strip before the war, some on orders from the Israeli military. In the event of a major influx of Palestinians from Gaza, Egypt would ideally try to limit the number of refugees to around 50,000 to 60,000, although the new desert camp covering around 20 square kilometers could accommodate more than 100,000, reports Wall Street Journal”. This corresponds to the population of Cottbus.
It was said that the planned camp was located far from Egyptian settlements. A large number of tents have already been brought there but have not yet been set up, the newspaper quoted Egyptian officials as saying.
Israel’s planned military offensive in Rafah is now met with growing criticism. According to the Wall Street Journal, Egypt is said to have even threatened to terminate the peace treaty with Israel if there was an influx of Palestinians from Gaza across the border. If Israel decides to launch the offensive, the military would attempt to move the civilian population north – out of the combat zone but within the Gaza Strip – the newspaper quoted a senior Israeli military official as saying.