Israel claims this map will help civilians in Gaza, many of which are very important

– I was told that I had to leave. I didn’t sleep last night because of the bombing. I didn’t sleep at all. I can’t sleep, I can’t live.

This is what Maryam Al-Astal from Khan Yunis, south of Gaza, says.

She is one of many Palestinians ordered to evacuate by the Israel Defense Forces on Saturday.

The campaign in Gaza is now in full swing again, after the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas ended on Friday.

Now Israel says it has created “safe zones” where civilians can seek shelter.

On the Israeli army’s website map, Gaza is divided into more than 100 areas. The Israeli army says it will inform residents in various areas when they must evacuate due to the bombing. Israel issued leaflets over Gaza bearing a QR code on the map.

On Saturday, Miriam was one of many who were told that she had to go to another area.

I don’t think the map helps anyone

Lindis Hurum, Secretary General of League Without Borders, strongly criticizes so-called safe zones and believes they are ineffective.

– We are talking about an incredible number of exhausted, weak and sick people who will then move from one small part of Gaza to another small part of Gaza. Hurum says as if it were simple.

She believes that the Palestinians are now treated as pieces in a game and not as human beings.

– This cannot be allowed to continue. The Secretary-General says that violating international law is a serious crime for us all.

NRK asked the IDF to respond to Horom’s criticism and whether such an evacuation of Palestinians could be carried out in practice. The IDF confirmed that it had received the questions, but had not yet responded to them.

Residents of Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza Strip told the BBC that they are now being subjected to the most violent attacks since the start of the war, and a video clip published by the Associated Press news agency will show an Israeli attack on the city.

Increased pressure on the population

Tormod Heyer, a professor at the Defense University, does not believe that these maps will mean a lower number of civilian deaths.

– no. Heyer tells NRK that there is a large and growing proportion of the population who are infected, exhausted and tired, and who do not have the resources to move quickly from one area to another.

On the contrary, he believes that the Israeli army’s publications increase the pressure on the civilian population in Gaza.

– They contribute to increasing psychological pressure on a population that is already severely affected, as they must always be ready to pack everything they have and move to a new area, in a very short time.

Peter Viggo Jacobsen, a lecturer at the Danish Defense Academy, also does not believe the map will help civilians.

Although Israel now uses maps and leaflets to indicate that it is doing everything to live up to the rules of war, it will still be difficult to do so in practice, he says. Radio Denmark (doctor).

I think it’s impossible to get away

The Palestinians NRK spoke to in Gaza believe it is practically impossible to stay away from the bombs, despite the map prepared by the Israeli army.

Especially for families with children and injured or sick family members, it is difficult to evacuate in a short time. Most of them also do not have access to a car or good fuel.

Nabil Saqallah has already fled Gaza City to Khan Yunis. Now he’s just waiting to suddenly have to evacuate from there as well.

These maps…we need international protection. We are bombing in the south, we are bombing in the north, we are bombing everywhere. There are no safe places in all of Gaza, he tells a local team in Gaza working at NRK.

Saturday An IDF spokesperson published several new maps on X (formerly Twitter) and ask residents in designated and numbered areas to evacuate.

In response to international pressure

Tormod Heyer believes that the fact that Israel has now created a map to help civilians evacuate may be a sign that they are feeling pressure from the international community.

– It indicates that the Israeli authorities are allowing in some way to put pressure on themselves, by accommodating some international concern, criticism directed at the Israeli army and how Israel is waging a war in one of the most densely populated regions of the world, says the professor. .

He also does not believe that this will help Israel in its fight against Hamas, because its soldiers will also move to “safe areas.”

– But surely the Israeli army must also realize that Hamas will do just that?

– Yes, this is correct. Perhaps this move by the IDF is primarily aimed at destroying military infrastructure, Haier answers, citing the tunnel system and command center as examples.