According to reports from Israeli media, Tel Aviv is planning to incorporate the city of Rafah, the southernmost part of the Gaza Strip, along with its surrounding areas, into a buffer zone created along the coastal enclave’s border. This area, covering approximately 75 square kilometers, extends between the Philadelphia and Murag roads.

The report indicated that Israel has ordered the evacuation of most of this area, which is currently nearly uninhabited. This action aligns with recent statements from high-ranking Israeli officials, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz, who have expressed intentions to appropriate vast stretches of territory in Gaza as a pressure tactic against the Palestinian Resistance Movement Hamas.

The report noted that there seems to be an intention to replicate in southern Gaza what was done in the north. Israel has been constructing an extensive containment zone along the borders of the Palestinian enclave. Additionally, months before the ceasefire, Israeli forces destroyed much of the infrastructure in northern Gaza, including healthcare facilities, in what was referred to as the “Generals’ Plan.” Thousands of displaced individuals who returned to northern Gaza earlier this year found a landscape of rubble and destruction.

Since resuming its offensive on March 18, Israeli ground troops have re-entered several areas in the north, reestablishing themselves in the Netzarim corridor and working on creating a new corridor that will further fragment the Gaza Strip. This new corridor is set to separate Rafah from the city of Khan Younis located to the north, as announced by Netanyahu on April 2. Following the recent intensification of ground operations in Gaza, Israel has occupied approximately 50% of the territory within the Strip.

The area that Israel plans to annex in the south represents about one-fifth of all of Gaza. Reports cited government sources indicating that it has not yet been decided whether to maintain this entire area as a prohibited buffer zone for civilians (as has been done in other perimeter areas) or to demolish and destroy all buildings, effectively annihilating Rafah.

Israel resumed intense bombardments on Rafah and its surroundings after breaking the ceasefire and restarting its offensive. The Gaza Government Media Office reported on Sunday that Israel has completely destroyed over 90% of homes in Rafah Governorate and 85% of its infrastructure. Before the onset of Israel’s campaign, Rafah housed around 200,000 Palestinians.

Israeli Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir visited southern Gaza on April 8 and expressed his expectation that troops would defeat Rafah Brigade of Hamas’s Qassam Brigades, despite previous claims by the military that they had already defeated them last September. According to reports, troops deployed to take control of Rafah are unclear about their ultimate operational goals and express concerns about potential dangers they face. In this regard, an Israeli soldier stated: “We will go back to destroying what has already been destroyed without anyone knowing for how long or what operational achievement is needed for forces to fulfill their mission.”

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