EPAIsrael is creating a new military dividing line in Gaza, cutting off the northern side of the strip, satellite images studied by BBC Verify show.
The army is in control and is clearing an area along the northern width of Gaza. Satellite images and videos show hundreds of buildings destroyed between the Mediterranean Sea and the Israeli border, mostly by controlled explosions.
Images also show that Israeli troops and vehicles have been stationed on the new dividing line. Analysts said the images showed Gaza was being divided into zones to make it easier to control.
An IDF spokesman told the BBC that they were “targeting terrorist organizations and infrastructure” in northern Gaza.
Dr. HA Hellyer, a Middle East security expert at the Rusi think tank, said satellite images showed Israel was preparing to prevent Palestinian civilians from returning to the northern province of Gaza. According to the United Nations, more than 100,000 people have been displaced from the northernmost region of Gaza.
The image shows two long sections of road at either end of a strip of cleared land connected by cleared land through an urban area. Buildings are being demolished between the two stretches of road, with clear outlines since early October.
The barrier stretches about 5.6 miles (9km) across Gaza, from east to west, separating Gaza City and the towns of Jabalia, Beit Hanoun and Beit Lahia in northern Gaza.
The BBC has learned that there is a tactical route between Jabalia and Gaza City, part of operations targeting Hamas in Jabalia.
Videos shot by the IDF and posted online show several multi-story buildings destroyed in controlled explosions since early October.
The image below shows examples positioned by BBC Verify along the new corridor.
An IDF spokesman told the BBC that they had no intention of destroying civilian infrastructure “that is not operationally necessary” to neutralize Hamas.
Other footage showed IDF Humvees being driven through the cleared area from the Israeli direction. Humvees are not as heavily armored as other military vehicles – and Dr Hellyer told the BBC such vehicles were unlikely to be used unless the military was confident in their safety, given saw the Israeli army controlling the area.
Some analysts believe the IDF presence could signal a permanent military divide – giving it control over who can travel between Gaza and northern Gaza provinces.
“They are doing long-term research,” Dr. Hellyer said of the IDF. I fully expect the northern division to develop identically to the Netzarim Corridor.”
The BBC previously documented how two partitions have been built in Gaza since the start of the current war. the The Netzarim corridor divides an area south of Gaza City, while the Philadelphia Corridor giving the IDF control of land along Gaza’s border with Egypt.
BBC analysis of this new division in the north shows a similar pattern to the construction of previous corridors over the past year, with existing and newly built roads connecting and military positions emerging. appears regularly. Buildings and farmland were cleared to pave roads and build military infrastructure.
Google Earth/Planet LabDr. Eado Hecht from the Begin–Sadat Center for Strategic Studies (Besa), an Israeli think tank specializing in national security and foreign policy, agrees that the data shows a new dividing line , but question whether it is designed to last.
“There is a new dividing corridor separating Gaza City and the northern towns of the Gaza Strip. The goal is to cut off the support and ability of Hamas forces – and other organizations – that have returned to that area, and their ability to withdraw, so that they can be dealt with more effectively.”
Israel denies that it is implementing the “Joint Plan”. According to the strategy devised by former general Giora EIland, civilians will be asked to leave the north, supplies will be blocked and the area will become a military zone. Those who stay will be treated as warriors and confronted the choice “surrender or starve”with the purpose of pressuring Hamas to release the hostages.
In a statement to the BBC, an IDF spokesman said: “The IDF operates according to clearly established military plans and the claim that the IDF is implementing this specific plan is inaccurate” .
But concerns are growing about the safety of thousands of Palestinian civilians still in besieged towns in northern Gaza.
The United Nations and aid charities have raised significant concerns about the situation in northern Gaza. While thousands of people are displaced, the United Nations said 65,000 people can stay in the area.
The United Nations also said that “virtually no aid” had reached North Gaza province in 50 days. A spokesman said Palestinians were facing “severe shortages of supplies and services as well as severe overcrowding and poor sanitation” due to the blockade.
Earlier this month, a United Nations-backed assessment said there was a strong possibility that Famine is imminent in besieged areas northern Gaza.
BBC analysis shows that around 90% of northern Gaza has been under evacuation orders since early October. Videos posted on social media show people being moved south of the new partition. It is unclear if and when they will be able to return, as Israel’s Foreign Minister confirmed that civilians will be allowed to return after the war.
Satellite images show displaced people in northern Gaza. Large groups of tents set up as temporary shelters disappeared. In the abandoned area, there are often destroyed buildings and other examples of military activity.
While the IDF appears to have established enough control in the area to move in light armored vehicles, heavy fighting also continues in the area between IDF troops and Hamas militants.
Video posted by Hamas militants showed clashes with IDF tanks in the area around the dividing line.
Experts disagree on how long the new siding can stay in place. Dr Hellyer suggested that it could form the basis for a plan to expel Palestinians from the region permanently.
“Personally, I think they will settle the Jewish settlers in the north, probably in the next 18 months,” he said. “They won’t call them settlements. They’ll start out calling them outposts or something, but that’s what they will be and they’ll grow from there.”
Israel’s far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich said the army should occupy Gaza and “encourage” about half of Palestinian civilians to leave the territory within two years.
But the Israeli government denies that it plans to build settlements in Gaza after the war ends, and Dr Hecht dismisses such proposals, saying it is nothing more than a “dream”. against some ultra-nationalist ministers.
“All three corridors (Philadelphi in the south, Netzarim in south Gaza City and the new corridor in north Gaza City) are aimed at control,” Dr. Hecht said.
“Their duration depends on when the war ends and how it ends.”
