Israel has constructed new land barriers in the Gaza Strip, moving yellow concrete markers and building earthworks that extend deeper into Palestinian territory. These actions have led to the displacement of families and have been described by experts as indicative of a plan for a long-term occupation.
The barriers were moved westward into the center of Salah al-Din road, a major north-south route in Gaza. Families living in the al-Tuffah area woke on Monday to find the concrete blocks had been repositioned. An Israeli flag was seen flying atop an approximately 3-meter (10-foot) tall earth barrier near the new demarcation.
Families like that of Umm Mohammed al-Shawish have been forced to move multiple times. After their home was destroyed, they were displaced again following an Israeli warning of an attack on a nearby building. Their tent, serving as their only shelter, was torn apart by the strike. "We are going to die here," Mohammed al-Shawish stated. "Death is better than humiliation. No-one is standing with us."
Under the terms of a U.S.-brokered ceasefire agreement in October, Israel was to withdraw its forces across Gaza to a designated demarcation line, known as the Yellow Line, which was intended to leave Israel in temporary control of approximately 53% of Gaza's territory. However, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has recently indicated a desire to expand Israeli control to over 70% of the territory.
Hamas has accused Israel of violating the October ceasefire by moving the Yellow Line further west. A senior Israeli government official rejected these claims, stating that IDF deployments and security lines are operational measures to protect Israeli citizens and prevent Hamas from rebuilding its military capacity, adding that Israel will continue to act against any ceasefire violations.
Israel initially marked the Yellow Line with concrete blocks but has since constructed a network of barriers that now stretches over 42 kilometers (26 miles), covering 85% of the designated Yellow Line area. Some sections of the earthworks extend significantly beyond the mapped Yellow Line. For example, one section near the al-Mawasi camp is over 1.5 kilometers past the original line, and another in Khan Younis is positioned more than 500 meters beyond it.
Experts have suggested to the BBC that these extensive earthworks indicate a strategy for a protracted occupation. The altered earth barriers effectively shift the de facto border deeper into Gaza, thereby expanding the area considered a no-go zone for Gazans.