MEM, August 12, 2026
![Palestinians are seen as the Israeli forces placed new yellow concrete blocks at the Sanfura junction continuing to expand the area known as the "Yellow Line" despite the ceasefire in western Gaza City, Gaza, Palestine, on July 27, 2026. [Ali Jadallah - Anadolu Agency]](https://i0.wp.com/www.middleeastmonitor.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/AA-20260727-42078631-42078619-ISRAEL_CONTINUES_ALTERING_YELLOW_LINE_BOUNDARIES_IN_GAZA-1-1.jpg?fit=920%2C613&ssl=1)
Palestinians are seen as the Israeli forces placed new yellow concrete blocks at the Sanfura junction continuing to expand the area known as the “Yellow Line” despite the ceasefire in western Gaza City, Gaza, Palestine, on July 27, 2026. [Ali Jadallah – Anadolu Agency]
Gaza should remain “destroyed for generations to come,” said former Israeli general Giora Eiland, who advocated using starvation as a weapon of war against Palestinians. Eliand also urged Israel not to relinquish the territory it has seized behind the so-called Yellow Line.
Eiland, a former head of Israel’s National Security Council and former chief of the Israeli army’s Planning and Operations directorates, made the remarks during an interview with Israeli radio station 103FM. His remarks were reported this week in Hebrew-language by Israeli newspaper Maariv under the headline: “Giora Eiland without filters: ‘It is better for Gaza to remain destroyed for generations to come’.”
Discussing the US-backed Board of Peace’s 15-point proposal for Gaza, Eiland described the plan as a “very pro-Hamas interpretation” of the earlier 20-point framework and argued that Israel should refuse to surrender its territorial gains inside the besieged enclave.
In further humiliation of President Donald Trump, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netenyahu has rejected the plan. Hamas has reaffirmed commitment to completing 2nd phase of Trump’s Gaza plan.
Eiland was particularly adamant about Israel retaining the territory behind the so-called Yellow Line, territory which Israel has occupied inside the Gaza strip. “We must not give up [the Yellow Line] under any circumstances,” he declared.
In contravention of international law, which prohibits the annexation of territory by force, Eiland compared Gaza with Germany after the Second World War, arguing that “the enemy has lost and we need land”. He said that the Gaza strip needs not be used for Israeli settlements but should instead remain as a “security buffer” where the Israeli army can operate.
While Eiland did not explicitly use the word annexation, his demand that Israel permanently retain the territory would entrench Israeli control over most of the Gaza Strip.
READ: UN reports 33% increase in aid supplies entering Gaza, but major restrictions remain
Israel has progressively moved the Yellow Line deeper into Gaza since the October 2025 ceasefire arrangements. By late July, Israel controlled around 70 per cent of the enclave, with yellow concrete barriers pushed further west and thousands of Palestinians displaced from newly seized areas.
In his interview, Eiland explicitly opposed Gaza’s reconstruction.
“Israel has no interest in Gaza being rebuilt,” he told 103FM. “It is better for us that it be destroyed for generations to come.”
He claimed that Palestinian despair served Israel’s interests, arguing that the greater the devastation in Gaza and the longer it remains as a visible reminder of the events of 7 October, 2023, “the better”.
The comments are consistent with Eiland’s repeated calls since the beginning of Israel’s assault on Gaza to punish the Palestinian population through starvation and terror.
In November 2023, writing in the Hebrew-language Yedioth Ahronoth, Eiland urged Israel not to be deterred by warnings of humanitarian catastrophe and disease. “The international community warns us of a humanitarian disaster in Gaza and of severe epidemics. We must not shy away from this,” he argued, adding that severe epidemics would “bring victory closer”.
South Africa subsequently cited Eiland’s remarks in its application accusing Israel of genocide before the International Court of Justice (ICJ), presenting them among statements it said demonstrated genocidal intent.
Eiland is seen as the mastermind of the so-called Generals’ Plan, which proposed ordering Palestinians out of northern Gaza before imposing a complete siege on those who remained, cutting off food, water, fuel and medicine.
International humanitarian law prohibits the starvation of civilians as a method of warfare, including deliberately depriving civilians of food, water and other objects indispensable to survival.
No comments:
Post a Comment