Open letter by Isabelle Defourny, President of MSF-France and Christopher Lockyear, MSF Secretary General

"Throughout Israel’s campaign of death and destruction, a clear pattern of unimaginable violence has emerged: people in Gaza are asked to make an impossible choice between staying, in defiance of the evacuation orders, being assimilated to legitimate targets and killed, or prevented from meeting basic needs; or leaving and risking their lives, be it during their trip, or at the new destination. At the same time, there is no hope for them to reach a truly safe place outside the Strip, as all Gaza crossing points have been closed since May 2024. We have been repeatedly calling for the reopening of these crossing points – accompanied with guarantees that the right to return for people is granted. Over the last weeks, conversations in Gaza have been intense about the so-called ‘Generals’ Plan’ or ‘Eiland Plan’ within the Israeli forces. This is a plan which consists of wiping Palestinians off the northern part of Gaza by either killing them, forcing them out, or starving to death those who stay. The way the ongoing offensive in the north is being waged, and the dehumanising language that Israeli authorities have been using towards Palestinians, reinforce the idea that we are witnessing the execution of this plan."

Al-Mawasi, Gaza, 17 November 2024 © Ibrahim Nofal