(United Nations) The UN has been informed by the Israeli army of an order to evacuate some 1.1 million residents from the northern Gaza Strip to the south within 24 hours, Israel said on Thursday. AFP the spokesperson for the secretary general of the organization, demanding that this order be canceled.
“Today (October 12) just before midnight local time,” UN officials in Gaza “were informed by their Israeli military liaison officers that the entire population north of Wadi Gaza was to be moved to the south within 24 hours,” said Stéphane Dujarric.
PHOTO RONEN ZVULUN, REUTERS
Israeli soldiers take part in maneuvers aboard an armored vehicle near the Gaza Strip.
“That’s roughly about 1.1 million people. The order applies to all UN personnel and all those sheltered in UN facilities – including schools, health centers and clinics. »
The sites of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) shelter more than 60% of the 423,000 people displaced in recent days in the Gaza Strip, but the number of those present north of Wadi Gaza was not available at this stage.
“The United Nations considers it impossible for such a population movement to take place without causing devastating humanitarian consequences,” insisted Stéphane Dujarric.
In these circumstances, “the United Nations strongly calls for this order, if confirmed, to be canceled to prevent what is already a tragedy from transforming into a calamitous situation,” he insisted.
“The UN’s response to Israel’s prior warning to the inhabitants of Gaza is shameful,” responded Israeli Ambassador to the UN Gilad Erdan in a message sent to AFP by his services, accusing the UN of having “turned a blind eye to Hamas which was arming itself and using the Gaza Strip to hide its weapons”.
“Now, instead of standing with Israel, whose citizens were massacred by Hamas terrorists, and which is trying to minimize the damage to those involved, (the UN) is lecturing Israel,” he denounced.
The UN Security Council has scheduled a new emergency closed-door meeting on Friday on the situation in the region.