According to humanitarian officials, the Israeli military has proposed a plan to the United Nations and aid organizations that involves a plan to control Gaza, which is closer than before the war, to raise doubts about whether Benjamin Netanyahu’s government intends to withdraw military forces.
At a meeting with the United Nations representatives on Wednesday and with officials from other agencies on Thursday, Army forces were given the task of providing assistance to occupied areas, outlining plans for the distribution of supplies to reviewed Palestinian recipients through a strictly managed logistics hub.
The blueprint appears to be a version of a plan tried in Gaza more than a year ago, known as the “humanitarian bubble” involving distributions of aid from small, highly controlled areas that will expand over time. But after several trials were conducted in northern Gaza, the experiment was abandoned.
Kogat had recovered it when Israel negotiated potential starts in phase two of the ceasefire agreement in January, and the potential start of the agreement should include the full evacuation of the IDF from the Gaza Strip. Instead, the COGAT program involves Israel’s grip on daily life in the Palestinian territory.
According to the aid source for the program, the “humanitarian hubs” themselves can be secured by private security contractors, but they will be located in areas “fully IDF-controlled”.
The only entrance to Gaza that allows aid under the program is the Israeli-controlled Kerem Shalom Crossing. The Rafa crossing between Egypt and Gaza will be permanently closed.
Non-governmental organizations (NGOs) allowed in Gaza must be registered in Israel and all employees working for them or United Nations agencies must be reviewed.
Since aid can only be allowed through Israel rather than through Rafa, this will make the operation of the United Nations Palestinian Refugee Relief Agency (UNRWA), by far the largest aid organization in Gaza, is impossible.
Aid officials familiar with the COGAT briefing said the plan was proposed as an established fact that Israeli officials claim it has received full support from the United States and therefore will be difficult to resist the United Nations.
The plan envisions Gaza where essential necessities are distributed to approved Palestinians and in limited distribution points under Israeli strict control. It does not mention Donald Trump’s plan to have the U.S. own ownership of the Gaza Strip and the emptied territory that Palestinian residents have emptied it.
Cogat did not respond to a request for comment on Friday. The plan was introduced as the Arab government discussed their plans for the future of Gaza. On February 21, a meeting of representatives from Egypt, Jordan and Gulf countries in the Saudi capital Riyadh approved an Egypt-designed $53 billion reconstruction plan that lasted three to five years, from the establishment of Tents and Mobile Homes living during the restructuring period, lasting three to five years.
The proposal will be proposed at an emergency Arab League summit in Cairo on Tuesday.
“The COGAT program was originally a disruptor, a replacement for the Arab program,” said a Jerusalem aid worker.
In January 2024, the IDF held a trial of the “humanitarian bubble” in three northern regions of Gaza. Selected Palestinians such as community elders will manage the distribution of food and other essential supplies, but the program never stands out. It was difficult to find local volunteers ready to work with the Israelis, and Hamas killed some locals who were chosen for the experiment.
“The bubble approach that has been rejected since the beginning of the war has various serious implications, as the Israelis will control each single supply,” said Amjad Shawa, Cyber Director of the Palestinian NGO.
Shawa said this would be an extension of the restrictive aid system currently supervised by the IDF. Under the ceasefire, the process of humanitarian aid entering Gaza reverts to 400 to 600 trucks per day before the war, but Shawa said when Israel has not delivered the promised number of tents when the children freeze to death.
UNRWA reported that six babies died from the cold on Monday and Tuesday in the Gaza Strip on Monday and Tuesday.
Shawa said the IDF also prevented water card tanks from entering, as well as notebooks and crayons used for improvised admission courses taught under canvas, citing the materials as “dual use.”
“They want to control the ABC where Palestinians live,” he said.
