Northern settlements void of Israeli settlers: Israeli media
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Israeli media confirm the continued evacuation of Israeli settlements adjacent to the Gaza Strip and the occupied Palestinian borders with Lebanon.
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People with their luggage wait in the northern Israeli town of Kiryat Shmona on the border with Lebanon, to be evacuated to a safer location on October 22, 2023. (AFP)
Israeli media sources have confirmed that the relocation of at least 125,000 settlers from settlements in southern and northern occupied Palestine is underway. This comes as both fronts are witnessing increased Resistance operations against Israeli occupation bases and settlements.
The correspondent of the Israeli Kan outlet said that "there are almost no settlers near the northern borders." More than 60,000 settlers have been evacuated from settlements along the northern borders of occupied Palestine with Lebanon, and the region is experiencing "cautious calm," he added.
Israeli media have previously highlighted the frustration felt by Israeli settlers in the north of occupied Palestine after they were forced to vacate their settlements following their shelling by the Lebanese Resistance.
Israeli Channel 12 noted that settlements up to 5 km away from Lebanon’s southern borders were vacated, clarifying that nearly 60,000 settlers have been evacuated from the north, 20,000 of whom reside in “Kiryat Shmona”.
The Israeli channel also mentioned that the evacuations took place “without prior planning,” further adding that “if the war should end today, not many would hasten to return to the North.”
In addition, the Israeli emergency authority and occupation army added 14 northern settlements within 5km from the Lebanese border to the evacuation plan funded by the government, following approval from Security Minister Yoav Gallant.
It is worth mentioning that Israeli media have revealed an Israeli government plan to establish a settlement full of tents near "Eilat" on the Red Sea to accommodate settlers from the Gaza envelope area.
The media highlighted that in "Eilat" alone, which had been targeted by the Resistance's rocket strikes until last week, "more than 10,000 settlers were relocated from the Gaza envelope settlements."
The spokesperson for the Israeli Ministry of Security stated that the Israeli government also recommended continuing the evacuation of areas surrounding the Gaza Strip and along the occupied Palestinian borders with Lebanon until the end of the year.
The Israeli Hotel Association previously stated that more than half of the hotel rooms in Israel are used to accommodate families evacuated from settlements surrounding the Gaza Strip, noting that out of 56,000 hotel rooms in the occupying entity, 28,000 rooms have been reserved for the evacuated families.
