Israel's plan for confining all Palestinians in 'humanitarian city'

Defence minister wants to establish zone in Gaza for displaced people – which they would not be allowed to leave – prompting accusations of war crimes

Rafah damage
Around 600,000 displaced Palestinians live in the coastal al-Mawasi area of Rafah, southern Gaza
(Image credit: Abed Rahim Khatib / Anadolu via Getty Images)

When Donald Trump announced in February that the US should take "ownership" of Gaza and develop the battered enclave into the "Riviera of the Middle East", he caused outrage across the Middle East – but not in Israel.

Standing alongside Benjamin Netanyahu, the US president suggested forcibly relocating two million Palestinian residents to a "good, fresh, beautiful piece of land" elsewhere, cheered by many far-right ministers in Netanyahu's coalition government.

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Harriet Marsden is a writer for The Week, mostly covering UK and global news and politics. Before joining the site, she was a freelance journalist for seven years, specialising in social affairs, gender equality and culture. She worked for The Guardian, The Times and The Independent, and regularly contributed articles to The Sunday Times, The Telegraph, The New Statesman, Tortoise Media and Metro, as well as appearing on BBC Radio London, Times Radio and “Woman’s Hour”. She has a master’s in international journalism from City University, London, and was awarded the "journalist-at-large" fellowship by the Local Trust charity in 2021.