Israel’s newly established Migration Directorate is already working to change the future of Gaza in an attempt to derail Arab efforts against its ethnic cleansing.
The directorate is an affiliate of Israel’s Ministry of Defence and was unveiled by Defence Minister Israel Katz in mid-February after he ordered his army to formulate a plan to help Palestinians leave Gaza if they so wish.
Israel describes this as a “voluntary migration” to other countries where Palestinians would permanently resettle. This matches up with US President Donald Trump’s plan for building a “Middle East Riviera” in the Gaza Strip.
Despite vehement Arab opposition, Israel is firmly in favour, with Katz describing it as “bold”. The Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT), another Ministry of Defence unit, is facilitating logistical coordination between Israel and Gaza, securing the departure of residents.
It has already arranged for the departure of 100 Gaza residents to Indonesia, where they will work in construction under a pilot programme that Israel hopes will provide a model and encourage other Palestinians to leave, with the Migration Directorate facilitating their exit.
Reasons to leave
The Gaza Strip has been decimated. In February, a joint report by the United Nations, the World Bank, and the European Union put infrastructure damage at $30bn and economic and social damage at $20bn.
In 2024, it said more than 292,000 homes had been destroyed or damaged, 95% of hospitals rendered non-functional, and the Strip’s economy had contracted by around 85%. Prices of goods (where available) had more than tripled, with unemployment at more than 80%. The percentage of the population in Gaza living in multi-dimensional poverty is due to hit 97.9%.
In opening the door for Palestinians to leave, Israel preys on their instinct to survive. It also knows that with most of its coastal territory destroyed, it is no longer fit for human habitation—a point Trump has emphasised multiple times in comments to the media.
Reinforcing message
Israel's resumption of the bombing just reinforces a message it has been trying to drive home: that nothing in Gaza will be left after it has finished. If that message wasn't clear enough, it has also blocked all entry of humanitarian aid and cut off water and electricity. For more than three weeks, nothing has gotten into Gaza—the longest period it has gone without aid since Israel launched its destructive war on 7 October.
Trump's real estate plan for Gaza jolted the Arab world into devising a Gaza reconstruction plan, endorsed by Arab leaders at an emergency summit in Egypt on 4 March. Despite being light on specifics, it intended to ward off Trump's blueprint.
Cairo is the driver behind the Arab plan. It has successfully rallied the international community behind it, but $53bn is still needed for its implementation. Next month, Egypt will host an international conference on Gaza's reconstruction, during which it will seek secure pledges of financial support.
Despite Trump singling out Egypt and Jordan to take in Palestinians from Gaza, both balked. For its part, Egypt has taken measures to prevent the displacement of the Palestinians into the Sinai Peninsula, increasing its security and military presence there.
This has led to accusations by some Israeli diplomats, including Israel's new ambassador to the US, that Cairo is violating the terms of their 1979 peace treaty, which limits Egyptian deployments in the region. Yet, Egypt's minister of defence has continually underscored the army's combat readiness and its ability to defend Egypt's borders.
