• Trump’s proposal could be classified under international law as war crimes, crimes against humanity, or even genocide, says Kemp
• ‘Lawful evacuation cannot involve sending people to a third country and it cannot be a pretext for ethnic cleansing or removing the population … indefinitely or on a permanent basis,’ says international law expert Michael Becker

ISTANBUL

US President Donald Trump’s recent comments about relocating Palestinians in Gaza to “safer areas” have sparked significant controversy, with legal experts warning that such a move could constitute ethnic cleansing and potential war crimes.

The White House stated on Wednesday that Trump believes it would be “more majestic” if Palestinians in Gaza were relocated to safer areas.

However, this proposal has been met with widespread criticism, with experts questioning its humanitarian motives and warning that any action that coerces Palestinians into leaving their homes – particularly without a clear plan for their return – could be categorized as ethnic cleansing.

Gerhard Kemp, a legal scholar and professor of criminal law at the University of the West of England, Bristol, argues that even if Trump's intentions are framed as humanitarian, the forced movement of Palestinians – whether direct or indirect – amounts to ethnic cleansing.

“If we take Trump’s statements at face value, and even if he expresses a motive of ‘good intentions’ … as long as the Palestinians are forced directly, or even indirectly coerced, into leaving their homes, and especially if there is no plan for them to be able to return, then it remains ethnic cleansing, broadly speaking,” Kemp told Anadolu.

Kemp further warned that such actions could be classified under international law as war crimes, crimes against humanity, or even genocide.

“It could be war crimes (if the population is forcibly transferred or expelled during the armed conflict); crimes against humanity (even if there is no longer an armed conflict (as defined by Article 7 of the Rome Statute); and genocide (if there is intent to destroy the Palestinians in Gaza in whole or in part – for example, by imposing on them mental harm because of the trauma of their lost homes and culture in Gaza,” he explained.

“If all these actions are done intentionally (and we can assume that from Trump’s deliberate wording), then it does not matter that it is done ‘with good motives’ – the result remains ethnic cleansing and could be analyzed through the war crimes, crimes against humanity, or genocide prisms.”  

Lawful evacuation ‘cannot involve sending people to a third country’

Legal expert Michael Becker said that while there are certain circumstances in which an occupying power may have the right to evacuate a civilian population for safety reasons during armed conflict, such an evacuation “cannot involve sending people to a third country.”

“It also cannot be a pretext for ethnic cleansing or removing the population from the territory indefinitely or on a permanent basis,” Becker, assistant professor of international human rights law at Trinity College, Dublin, told Anadolu.

“International courts have also found that whether a population transfer constitutes forced displacement depends on whether people have a genuine choice in the matter. This means that even if some Palestinians might appear to consent to relocation, this would not necessarily make their displacement genuinely voluntary or lawful.”

For Sergey Vasiliev, an international law professor at Open University in the Netherlands, Trump’s proposals “reek of callousness, historical illiteracy and lack of any moral or legal compass.”

While ethnic cleansing does not constitute a legal category, he explained, the acts it describes may fall under war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide, depending on the circumstances.

“Forcible displacement/transfer or deportation in this situation would certainly qualify as one or more of these crimes. The expulsion of Palestinians from Gaza would be a repetition of the catastrophe of 1948 (Nakba) all over again, with disastrous consequences,” he said.

“The proposal is out of reach because Palestinians have a very strong link with the land and will not leave voluntarily. So, what Trump effectively suggests is the expulsion of people already devastated by 16 months of brutal conflict; if the plan goes ahead, it is likely many more of them will perish.”  

Israel’s claims of ‘safe areas’ in Gaza

Trump’s remarks about relocating Palestinians to “safer areas” also draw comparisons with Israel’s actions during the ongoing war in Gaza, where the Israeli military has designated large portions of the enclave as no-go zones.

At one point, around 83% of Gaza was labeled as such, forcing Palestinians into increasingly congested areas, with many fleeing to Rafah in southern Gaza.

However, these so-called “safe areas” have been anything but safe, as Israel has frequently bombed these locations, even targeting humanitarian shelters and refugee camps.

In one such incident last month, Israeli airstrikes killed 11 people in the al-Mawasi tent encampment, which had been labeled as a humanitarian safe zone for civilians.

Analysts have often raised serious concerns about the potential for war crimes in these so-called safe areas.

Nicola Perugini, senior lecturer in international relations at the University of Edinburgh, wrote in an article for Al Jazeera last year that “the designation of safe areas in Gaza allows the Israeli army to carry out war crimes more efficiently and then to deny them.” 

Arab alternative: No displacement of Palestinians

Unlike Trump’s relocation proposal, the Arab peace plan for Gaza, which does not involve the displacement of Palestinians, emphasizes the importance of the consent of Gaza’s residents.

Jordan’s Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi has stated that an Egyptian-led initiative aims to rebuild Gaza without forcibly relocating Palestinians.

Egypt has also confirmed its opposition to any forced displacement of Palestinians, and intends to present a proposal for the reconstruction of Gaza that is designed to ensure that the Palestinian people remain on their land, consistent with their legal and rightful claims

Palestinian group Hamas has also publicly commended Jordan and Egypt for rejecting any attempts to forcibly remove Palestinians from the Gaza Strip.

Meanwhile, according to the Financial Times, European states, working closely with Arab allies, are also collaborating to formulate a new proposal for Gaza.

This plan, according to the report, seeks to present an alternative to Trump’s controversial relocation idea by ensuring that Palestinians can remain in their homes while rebuilding Gaza.​​​​​​​