Gaza Center for Human Rights: We warn against moving the yellow concrete blocks westward toward residential neighborhoods and areas housing the displaced

Gaza Center for Human Rights:

▪We warn against moving the yellow concrete blocks westward toward residential neighborhoods and areas housing the displaced, which expands the scope of military control and narrows the spaces available to residents.

▪During October, we documented movements of the yellow line in al-Shuja'iyya east of Gaza City, and in the vicinity of al-Maghazi camp in the central Strip, coinciding with shelling, gunfire, and targeting of tents of the displaced.

▪The area controlled by the occupation forces or subject to strict access restrictions exceeds 70% of the Strip's area, while the area that may be usable for housing and shelter may not exceed about 15%, according to its estimates.

▪We affirm that moving the yellow line pushes families into repeated displacement, and deprives residents of access to their homes, agricultural lands, and sources of livelihood, amid a shortage of shelter and basic services and the suspension of reconstruction.

▪We warn that the continuation of these practices may turn repeated displacement into a permanent reality, and that the forced transfer of civilian population is prohibited under Article 49 of the Fourth Geneva Convention, while taking into account the specific exceptions contained therein.

▪We call on the guarantor states of the ceasefire agreement, foremost among them the United States, Egypt, Qatar, and Turkey, to stop expanding the scope of control, protect civilians and shelters, and guarantee residents' access to their property and their right to safe and voluntary return.