Israeli forces to begin withdrawing from Netzarim Corridor: Reports
The Israeli military will begin a complete withdrawal from Gaza’s Netzarim Corridor tonight, according to reports in the Israeli media.
Yedioth Ahronoth is reporting that the army the 162nd Division will redeploy to near the border and the evacuation of Netzarim will mean the complete withdrawal of Israeli forces from the northern Gaza Strip.
Per the ceasefire agreement, the Israeli military is supposed to withdraw completely from the Netzarim Corridor, which bisects Gaza, and allow free movement back and forth between the southern and northern parts of the Gaza Strip.
The Netzarim Corridor, which contained an illegal Israeli settlement between 1972 to 2005, was seen as important to the ambitions of Israeli settlers to re-establish a settlement in the area.
Al Jazeera Arabic has obtained footage showing Israeli soldiers burning some of their belongings before the withdrawal.
Israel’s channel 12 airs video of Israeli officer issuing order to withdraw from Netzarim
Channel 12 Israel has aired a video showing an Israeli military officer issuing instructions to his soldiers to withdraw from the Netzarim Corridor.
“We are preparing for the final exit from the Netzarim. The order of exit is the same as the entry,” the Israeli army officer says.
“We will return here, do not worry. Hamas is preparing, but we are also preparing. We will return and we will recover all the kidnapped. God willing, the Trump plan will go into effect and we will return to settlement here and build all the settlements. Please confirm receipt.”
Israel’s withdrawal from Netzarim Corridor marks major step in ceasefire
Israel’s withdrawal from the Netzarim Corridor is very, very significant. First of all, it’s significant because, throughout the war, the Israeli army and the Israeli government were saying, “There is no way we’re going to leave the Netzarim Corridor”.
This exit from that area shows the ceasefire is moving forward.
Despite all the difficulties, it’s also important for aid agencies as movement from the south to the north and back will now be a lot easier than it used to be.
Keeping in mind that Gaza is pretty much destroyed and moving is difficult, but the fact that the Israeli army is not there will make everything easier, including the transfer of goods and the transfer of humanitarian assistance.
So strategically and politically, this is a very important signal that the complete withdrawal of Israeli forces is now plausible.
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