An online map of the Gaza Strip that was released by the Israeli Defense Forces as an attempt to redirect civilians to safety is nothing more than a "PR stunt," a Gazan living in Khan Yunis has stressed.
The map in question was issued to the public on Friday and breaks down Gaza into some 600 sections, some as small as a block or two. Instead of equipping it with interactive features, the Israeli military instructed Gazans to follow updates from its Arabic language social media on X for evacuation guidance.
Map of the Gaza Strip Devided Into Zones
© Photo : IDF
Accessing this map requires not only electricity and internet but also the ability for Palestinians amidst intense bombardment to stay updated on social media. Additionally, on Monday, when IDF’s Arabic spokesperson, Avichay Adraee, advised evacuation from several specific areas, the infographic shared didn’t align with his written instruction.
“It’s a PR stunt that pays lip service to the idea of civilian protection,” Mohammad Ghalayini, a Khan Younis city dweller, told US media, “so then US politicians can point to the map and say: ‘Look Israel is doing everything it can.’”
The map itself has only continued to add to the confusion in Gaza. Ghalayini has had to move five times during the ongoing crisis, first leaving Gaza City for Khan Yunis, now having to escape Israel's bombardment as the IDF has already started hitting the city.
“The map isn’t usable because the communications are really, really bad,” Ghalayini told US media.
Ghalayini isn't alone in highlighting the poor effort. Representatives of several international organizations blasted the map for its uselessness. Juliette Touma, director of communications of the UN’s Palestinian relief agency emphasized that there is no safe place in Gaza now, regardless of maps.
“No place is safe across the Gaza Strip including the south,” she told US media in an email. “During this war, no civilian infrastructure or facility has been spared, including hospitals, medical facilities, schools, and UN shelters,” the official stressed.
In addition, UNICEF spokesman James Elder noted that “the so-called safe zones… are not rational, they are not possible, and I think the authorities are aware of this.”