The Israeli Evacuation Orders in Lebanon and Gaza Are Actually Ethnic Cleansing Tactics By Aya Youssef Al-Mayadeen, October 3, 2024

Thousands of Palestinians leaving northern Gaza Strip to the south, during a fire break, November 10, 2023

Evacuate or else: 'Israel's' 'thoughtful' tactics in Lebanon and Gaza

Al-Mayadeen English, 3 Oct 2024

"Israel's" evacuation orders in Lebanon, supposedly aimed at protecting civilians, are widely seen as ethnic cleansing tactics, forcing residents to flee under chaotic, vague warnings.

For over a week, the people of Lebanon have been living in constant fear, glued to their phones each night, awaiting the latest evacuation orders from the Israeli occupation forces’ Arabic spokesperson, Avichay Adraee. Not because they’re avid followers of his statements, but because these announcements determine if their homes will be bombed that night. This indiscriminate ritual has turned into a nightly horror, where civilians anxiously scroll through social media, hoping that their house isn’t the next target.

The Israeli military has issued countless evacuation orders across Lebanon, sometimes up to six in a mere two hours. At times, these warnings specify exact locations, but increasingly, they include vague maps covering entire neighborhoods—essentially marking entire civilian areas for indiscriminate bombardment. "Israel" often claims that Hezbollah operates in these zones, but the victims of these strikes are predominantly civilians with no safe place to go, or those who have chosen not to abandon their homes.

Two dozen villages forced to flee

On October 2nd, the Israeli occupation forces (IOF) ordered civilians in two dozen villages in southern Lebanon to evacuate immediately, citing Hezbollah’s activities in the area.

“Hezbollah’s activity forces the IDF to act against it. The IDF does not wish to harm you,” Avichay Adraee announced via X. “For your safety, you must evacuate your homes immediately. Anyone near Hezbollah operatives, their facilities, or their weapons puts themselves at risk.”

These orders are typically posted on social media platforms, platforms to which many civilians—especially those without reliable internet connection—may not even have access. Furthermore, the time given for evacuation is alarmingly short, often only 30 minutes or less. In a blatant display of disregard for human life, the Israeli military expects entire villages to evacuate with little to no time to prepare, while offering no assurance of safety in the areas they flee to.

On October 2nd, the Israeli military issued seven evacuation orders within a span of 90 minutes. Some of these orders were for the same area, demonstrating not only chaos but also the careless repetition of warnings as a form of psychological warfare.

Can we trust 'Israel’s' evacuation orders?

The short answer: Absolutely not. The Israeli military has a history of misleading civilians with evacuation orders, striking areas far beyond those specified. This has been evident in Beirut’s Southern Suburb, where on Thursday, October 5th, the IOF issued an evacuation order for the Southern Suburb of Beirut but ended up striking central Beirut, targeting a health center in Bachoura—an area not included in the warnings. A heath facility was struck in the attack, and seven health personnel from the Islamic Health Association were killed.

This isn’t a one-off incident. In Gaza, the Israeli military has been using similar tactics during its ongoing genocide. Back in October 2023, "Israel" announced certain areas as “safe zones” and urged civilians to relocate there. But once Palestinians moved to these designated zones, "Israel" still bombed them. The UN reported in July 2024 that only about an eighth of Gaza was not under Israeli evacuation orders, turning Gaza into a death trap for those trying to seek safety. The so-called “safe zones” of al-Mawasi and Khan Younis became killing fields, with Israeli forces bombing these areas over 10 times and massacring civilians who were lured there under false pretenses.

Moreover, the Israeli military demonstrated its brutality by ordering Palestinians in Gaza to evacuate via social media back in October 2023, during a complete blackout, issuing the instructions in English to an Arabic-speaking population.

Ethnic cleansing tactics

Let’s be clear; "Israel’s" evacuation orders are not about protecting civilians. These are ethnic cleansing tactics, plain and simple. They provide a thin cover for legality, a pretext to shift the blame onto the civilians for staying behind, while "Israel" clears out entire populations and levels neighborhoods.

International law is unequivocal about this: Targeting civilians and failing to distinguish between military and civilian areas are war crimes. "Israel’s" actions—bombing densely populated areas after issuing insincere evacuation orders with little notice—constitute blatant violations of these laws. 

Moreover, civilians must have sufficient time to evacuate, something "Israel" routinely ignores. In Lebanon, people are left scrambling to find transportation, with nowhere truly safe to escape to. The entire country is under threat, and every night brings the horrifying possibility of another round of airstrikes, with evacuation orders serving as little more than psychological warfare.

The reality of Israeli 'warnings'

The evacuation orders issued by "Israel" are a cruel joke, designed more to justify destruction than to protect civilians. The real goal is not evacuation; it is depopulation. By forcing civilians out of their homes and then bombing indiscriminately, "Israel" is systematically emptying areas it deems “problematic.” 

In Lebanon and Gaza, these tactics are destroying entire communities, displacing families, and creating generations of trauma. The Israeli government may claim they’re acting in "self-defense", but their actions tell a different story, that of deliberate ethnic cleansing and mass punishment.

Ultimately, the evacuation orders serve not as humanitarian gestures but as weapons, and "Israel" is wielding them to their fullest extent, with people in Lebanon and Gaza standing steadfast in their land, refusing to be uprooted by empty threats that surround them. 

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