US President Donald Trump’s Board of Peace is planning a pilot “humanitarian zone” in southern Gaza that would aim to accommodate tens of thousands of vetted Palestinian civilians, a board official told AFP.The official said the zone could act as a “starting point” for the Palestinian technocratic committee meant to assume the day-to-day governance of Gaza’s transitional phase out of war under Trump’s 20-point plan. The pilot zone, which the board is eyeing for Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip, would be secured by multinational troops from the International Stabilisation Force (ISF), a fledgling body which operates under the Board of Peace.The National Committee for the Administration of Gaza (NCAG), the group of Palestinian technocrats established by the Board of Peace, would carry out screening and access control, supported by the ISF.“Movement in and out will remain free for all unarmed civilians,” the board official told AFP.
Concerns over humanitarian law, displacement
The concept of closed humanitarian zones has raised serious reservations, with diplomats and NGO officials working in Gaza telling AFP that such a mechanism seems incompatible with international humanitarian law.Diplomats and NGO officials say grouping civilians into demarcated areas subject to access controls could amount to forced displacement, restrict Palestinians’ freedom of movement and undermine the principle of impartiality.Efforts to advance the US-backed ceasefire plan for Gaza have been stalled for months, with the NCAG stuck in Cairo and yet to enter the territory. Since the truce between Israel and Hamas came into effect last October, Israeli forces have expanded their presence in Gaza and now control more than 60 per cent of the territory.The Board of Peace was formally established earlier this year as part of the US-backed ceasefire plan for Gaza endorsed by the UN Security Council. It aims to facilitate a transition away from Hamas rule while supporting the restoration of civilian administration and basic services.
