Israel is building an earthen barrier in Gaza to stabilize the city’s divisions | Israel-Palestine War News

The construction of the barrier has fueled Palestinian fears that most of Gaza will not be abandoned by Israel.

The Israeli army is building a huge earthen barrier to separate the more than 50% of Gaza under its control from the rest of the territory, satellite images show, fueling Palestinian fears that much of the territory will never leave Israel.

The barrier consists of a steel barricade and tunnels and extends beyond the so-called “yellow line” that is supposed to demarcate the occupied territories of Israel and Palestine under the US-backed cease-fire agreement signed in October 2025, the Israeli newspaper Haaretz reported on Wednesday.

Haaretz reported that in Khan Younis the barrier is about 400 meters (a quarter of a mile) across the yellow line, and at one point in the Rafah area it reaches about 1,300 meters (4,260 feet) beyond the line.

Built over the last few years months, the barrier is already more than 23km (14 miles), according to the AP. The entire Gaza Strip is about 40km (25 miles) long.

The barrier passes through Palestinian territories whose homes, infrastructure, and agricultural land were already destroyed during the Israeli war that began in 2023.

Israel has also built new roads and laid foundations on the ruins of Palestinian towns. The Palestinians fear that they will not be able to return to their land, and some Israeli officials have made this clear want to take some of them.

“I want to establish three Nahal units, which are also a military unit, in the areas that were in the north of Gaza,” Defense Minister Israel Katz told Channel 14 last week.

On Sunday, thousands of Israelis, including residents and activists, marched to the border with Gaza and called on the government to resettle Israeli settlements.

“Today we are marching to tell the Israeli government and show the whole world that this land is ours and that Gaza is ours and we want to return there,” said Daniel Sellem, who took part in the march.

Palestinians in Gaza, meanwhile, are trapped in overcrowded camps along the coast west of the yellow line, where they are still being monitored by Israeli planes and are facing a lack of aid and supplies.

Asked by the AP to comment on the satellite images, the Israeli military said they were building a physical barrier in the area of ​​the yellow line.

The cease-fire agreement decided that the yellow line would serve as a temporary border pending the withdrawal of the Israeli army from the Gaza Strip, to be replaced by an international army.

But Israel largely ignored the agreement and appeared to be digging it in, fueling Palestinian fears that the line was encroaching on the border.

Israeli soldiers killed Palestinians who approached or crossed the line. The Israeli army says it will shoot people it suspects are terrorists who are threatening its soldiers. But those killed have also included children and civilians who seem unaware of the line. Some soldiers have said they don’t always know who they are shooting at and order anyone who crosses the border to be killed.