The north and south of the Palestinian enclave are the target of Israeli bombings, which makes “population movements impossible”, argues Christian Cardon.
“We refuse to accept a scenario in which the entire northern Gaza Strip is completely emptied of its population”, protested Monday, November 6 on franceinfo Christian Cardon, former head of mission of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) in Gaza, while the Israeli army launched a new call for civilians to leave the north of this enclave Palestinian. Christian Cardon also maintains that“today the movements [de population] are made impossible” and “hundreds of thousands of people” are still there.
franceinfo: The Israeli army is once again calling on civilians to leave the northern Gaza Strip. Can they do it?
Christian Cardon: Today it has become even more complicated. Certainly, there are a lot of negotiations underway, but on the ground, we see no change, or even a worsening. Last night, some colleagues who remained in the northern Gaza Strip confirm that it was probably one of the most intense nights. Movements are made impossible for the population. We are talking about hundreds of thousands of people who are either taking refuge in hospitals, in schools, or who have decided to stay in their homes. Crossing this river of wadi Gaza, then arriving towards the South-East has become very complicated. And what you need to know is that in the South, the bombings also continue.
Do you have any news from the ICRC agents still there?
There is no visible change on the ground. [Il y a toujours] a lack of water, food and electricity. The bombings continue and for the third time since the start of the conflict, communications [ont été] completely cut off, making the suffering excruciating for families between the North and the South, and for those in the West Bank or abroad. These families find themselves overnight with zero communication from their family who are under bombs in Gaza. This makes the families’ worries enormous, but also the work of humanitarians and medical staff on site almost impossible.
The Israeli army claimed Monday morning that it had coordinated with Jordan the airdrop of medical aid and food to Gaza. In your opinion, is this a solution given that trucks remain largely blocked on the border between Egypt and the Gaza Strip?
Anything that comes into Gaza today in terms of humanitarian aid is obviously welcome. The needs are immense. Now, we must be clear and think about what comes next, about those who remained in the North. Under no circumstances can the North be completely emptied of its population and become a battlefield, in which all buildings, including civilian ones, must be destroyed. Beyond the humanitarian crisis, we are also facing a very significant protection crisis. It is key to recall the basic rules of the law of war, but also to ensure that humanitarian workers can return [sur place]. The ICRC is in discussions with both the Israelis and Hamas, at the highest level, to ask that we be able to return to the north of this Gaza Strip to do our work and ensure that the hospitals continue to function. . We refuse to accept a scenario in which the entire northern Gaza Strip is completely emptied of its population.