Why Can't Gazans Leave?

[miniaturepixieonacid]

There is probably a very simple answer to this that I missed in early news reports.

It's so awful watching News Feeds that essentially seem to say that Gazans are having to move around in a cat and mouse game with the IDF to avoid bombs but have nowhere left to go.

I am very aware that war has casualties and other countries are at war. I am not necessarily saying that IDF should stop fighting.

But this war is different in that all civilians seem to be trapped. Normally war creates refugees. Ukrainians, Afghans, Syrians - they were able to get out. Not all, I know, but movement was an option and it kept civilian casualties down. Why can't Gazans leave Gaza?

Because there's a sodding great fence/wall around Gaza! They aren't allowed free movement.

I know there's a border. I just thought other countries would let them across it into their countries in a war situation. Not necessarily to bear the full burden but then for the international community to help out. Maybe we wouldn't but we have taken refugees from other conflicts.

But if Hamas won't let them leave then that explains it. Thanks.

Just so hard to watch.

Nice victim blaming 🙄

Other countries dont want to risk terrorists in their domain, who then wont leave.

It’s not that Hamas won’t let them. There would be over a million refugees, which Country can take them? Knowing full well those refugees are never going to be allowed back (be in no doubt of that). Anyway there will be nothing for them to go back to, Israel are making sure of that. So any Country taking them in will be doing so permanently. It’s called ethnic cleansing.

I guess because all their borders (apart from a small one bordering Egypt) border Israel, who won’t take them and why would they want to seek refuge in the country that is obliterating them. Imagine, it would be like Russia bombing Ukraine and the only way they can escape is through Russia…

In the past, Palestinians have tried to take over the government of countries where they were refugees.

Particularly Jordan in the 1970s. Jordan's government actually fought a war to get them out after they tried a revolution to take over the Jordanian state.

Nobody wants refugees who will try and take over with guns and army grade weaponry the country they are in.

IHaveAFlu - I know that nobody should have to leave their homes. But if there were bombs dropping all around you, would you not be desperate to leave? I would. I'm sure their feelings of identity are stronger than mine. But, if the world was prepared to help them get out, I'm pretty sure many would go.

@IHaveAFlu ! Please check your history.

“Israel” and “Palestine.” One land, two names. Both Jews and Arabs have claimed it as theirs alone. From a purely historical perspective, “Israel” predates “Palestine” by more than a millennium. But, with the Jewish people then dispersed from their homeland, “Palestine” became home to a substantial Arab population, again for more than a millennium. From a perspective of justice and equity, both peoples have a legitimate

Arabs, Jews and Christians have lived in the area known as Palestine but the Jews predate the Arabs by more than a millennium.

Gaza is very unique in it's geography, as well as many other things. It's so small that the vast majority of its border is with Israel. They also have a very small (tiny) border with Egypt which is largely closed. So they literally don't have any options. If you have a look at it on a map, you'll see the issue pretty quickly.

No, Gazans can't leave because ethnic
cleansing is taking place.
Do adults really surmise this level of puerile? Seriously.

If the question is legit then my answer would be:
The people of Gaza can't leave because Hamas won't let them out and surrounding countries won't let them in. Its a shit show long in the making and there are no good responses but Hamas committed atrocities that needed to be responded to and doing nothing is not an option as Hamas have said they will be doing it again at the first opportunity. Its as clear a line between humanity and evil as its possible to draw requiring a stop be put to it as most civilized people agree, any disagreement seems to be about the way to stop it and again, there is no good way for that to happen given all the circumstances. I hate it but Hamas did it to create a reaction and now they have it and so do the people under their control.

Israel has imposed a blockade on Gaza for the last 16 years. Gazans don't have free movement. They can't leave without permission from Israeli authorities. The only people who've left Gaza since the bombardment started are those with foreign passports and that was a big effort to make Israel allow that. Israel also bombed the Rafah crossing into Egypt in the early days of their bombardment of Gaza.

Egypt doesn't want to conflict spilling into Egypt and realistically it can't take over 2million refugees. It also doesn't want to be complicit in Israel's ethnic cleansing.

Palestinians are stateless. If they leave, Israel won't allow them to go back. We know this because this is what has always happened to Palestinians in the Occupied Territories.

How would there be over a million refugees when the entire population of Gaza is well under one million?

Which border are they supposed to leave by?

The closed border to Egypt or the closed border to Israel?

Even foreign passport holders were no allowed to leave for weeks, and even then they had strict lists drawn up and approved by Egypt and Israel.

They can leave because they aren't allowed to.

Israel controls the border. - no one gets out without specific access. Israel controls what food and aid comes into Gaza and also controls the electricity and water supplies. Basically the Palestinians in Gaza are in an open air prison

Interesting that ethic cleansing is espoused, by those who have no idea of its definition.

The only borders are Israel and Egypt and neither of those countries want them to come in or will allow them to come in.

Israel won't let them into Israel because the Gazans want to kill the Israelis. You'd have to ask Egypt why they won't let the Gazans in.

I'm sorry to say but Arab countries are never really very supportive of each other in times of crises and I can't understand why. Look at Poland and what it did for Ukraine when war broke out - Egypt could have done that.

And they can't even leave by sea as if I remember correctly they only have 17 miles from the coast and then the Israeli's would blow them up. Pretty much they're stuck. Where the Isreali's thought that northern gazans were going to go is another mystery entirely.

Bear in mind how tiny Gaza is - in most conflicts most people are internally displaced, ie they seek safety in a different bit of the country. That’s not possible in Gaza, plus the borders are closed. The only land borders are with Israel and a small one with Egypt - which is where the tiny amount of aid is going in.

Egypt does have concerns that members of Hamas will mingle with civilians to escape. There is also the issue that Israel may not allow them back in.

The rest of the world has intervened on this. They've only just about got foreign nationals out and very limited amounts of aid in.

Israel largely control the border points including the Egyptian one. (They have a settlement with Egypt where agreements have to be met over what and who crosses into Egypt)

Arab nations don't want to enable Israel ethic cleansing not do they want to have a bunch of refugees to deal with.

Egypt is the nation with the second largest debt issue in the world. If they did open the border they would end up with thousands crossing the border. Unemployment in Egypt is already high. A whole bunch of Palestinians crossing would politically destabilise the country which is already struggling. Plus the cost of feeding and housing these refugees (but not their own citizens) would cause issues.

They also don't want the Hamas issue on their soil. Imagine if Hamas did another 7/10 attack from Egypt. What might Israel do? Another land grab or would the Egyptian army be forced to intervene?

Egypt has their own problems with Islamic fundementalists. They don't want any Hamas people as well.