Israeli Plan to Establish a Large Camp in Rafah Equipped with Facial Recognition Technology

SadaNews - A retired Israeli general stated that Israel has cleared land in southern Gaza to build a camp for Palestinians, likely equipped with surveillance and facial recognition technology at its entrance.

Amir Avivi, a retired Brigadier General in the reserves, said in an interview with Reuters that the camp will be established in an area in Rafah free of tunnels built by Hamas, with Israeli security personnel monitoring the entries and exits.

Avivi is the founder of the Israeli Defense and Security Forum, an influential group representing thousands of reservists in the Israeli army. He does not speak on behalf of the Israeli army, which has declined to comment.

The office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has not yet commented on any plans to establish a camp in Rafah.

Avivi stated that the camp will be used to house Palestinians who wish to leave Gaza and cross into Egypt, as well as those who want to stay.

His comments come as Israel prepares for a "limited reopening" of the Rafah border crossing between Gaza and Egypt, a key demand under U.S. President Donald Trump's plan to end the Gaza conflict.

Sources told Reuters this month that Israel wants the number of Palestinians leaving Gaza to be larger than those allowed to enter.

Israeli officials have previously spoken about encouraging Gazans to emigrate, although they deny any intention to forcibly displace the population outside the strip, a highly sensitive issue for Palestinians.

Avivi said, "There are practically no residents of Gaza in Rafah at all."

The area came under complete Israeli military control after a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas in October, with most Palestinians fleeing to areas controlled by Hamas.

He added that "there is a need to create infrastructure in Rafah to accommodate them, and then they can choose whether to go or not."

He stated that this facility would likely be a "large and organized camp" that could accommodate hundreds of thousands and could enforce identity checks, including facial recognition.

Israeli Occupation Army Minister Israel Katz told Israeli media in July that he had ordered the troops to prepare a camp in Rafah to shelter residents of Gaza. Officials have not publicly discussed such plans since then.

Ismail al-Thawabitah, director of the Government Media Office in Gaza, said in a statement to Reuters that this idea represents "obvious attempts to impose disguised forced displacement, and there are new field realities aimed at emptying the land of its original inhabitants."

All nearly two million residents of Gaza have been forced to live in a narrow coastal strip from which Israeli forces withdrew under the ceasefire while Hamas retained control.

The Trump plan for Gaza, now in its second phase, calls for the reconstruction of the strip to begin from Rafah and for Hamas to disarm in exchange for further withdrawal of Israeli forces from the area.

Avivi stated that the Israeli army is preparing to launch a new attack on Hamas if it refuses to disarm. This may include resuming attacks on Gaza City, the largest city in the strip.

Avivi mentioned that the camp in Gaza could be used to shelter Palestinians fleeing a renewed Israeli attack.

He added, "Plans have been made. The army is ready to receive the order from the government, namely from the Cabinet, to renew its maneuvers in Gaza."

The Israeli army says it continues to carry out its operations in Gaza since the ceasefire to thwart what it describes as attacks planned by militants and to destroy Hamas's tunnel network beneath the Palestinian territory.

Avi Dichter, a minister in Netanyahu's government and former head of the internal security agency (Shin Bet), stated that disagreements over disarmament could lead Israel back to war in Gaza.

Dichter told Reuters, "We must prepare for war in Gaza," adding that the disarmament issue "must be resolved by the Israeli forces the hard way."