US security companies ‘staffing' Gaza checkpoints

Palestinians passing through Netzarim Corridor have been subjected to security checks by the contractors

An armed member of a foreign security company watches from an observation point as Palestinians travel back to northern Gaza. EPA

Live updates: Follow the latest on Israel-Gaza

Palestinians passing through the Netzarim Corridor in central Gaza vacated by Israeli troops are being subjected to security checks by US contractors, sources told The National on Monday.

Israeli forces have completed their withdrawal from the military zone, which divided northern and southern Gaza, as part of a ceasefire agreement with Hamas. Hundreds of displaced Palestinians are travelling north, either by car or on foot, to return to their homes. But the journey requires them to pass through four checkpoints.

At one checkpoint "we encountered security personnel – both Arab and foreign – who conducted inspections", said Mahmoud Jundia, 42, who was displaced to Khan Younis in the south with his family of seven. Despite the large number of people heading north, traffic flowed relatively smoothly, he added.

Also read: US security contractors in Gaza: What we know so far

Vehicles passed through inspections without significant delay but one detail stood out to Mr Jundia – the presence of foreign personnel.

Before the ceasefire in Gaza came into force on January 19, sources told The National that two American security firms and an Arab company would oversee screenings of Palestinians and their vehicles. The contracts for these companies are set to last for the duration of the six-week truce brokered by Egypt, Qatar and the US.

Members of an Arab security company are responsible for interacting with Gazans, the sources said. These personnel are under strict orders to remain cordial and refrain from conducting body searches.

"In cases of friction with the travellers, they must remain silent and composed," said one source.

Foreign security personnel check the details of displaced Palestinians travelling to northern Gaza. EPA

Some personnel are stationed several hundred metres from the checkpoints as lookouts, relaying information through walkie-talkies about suspicious people or objects. Those conducting vehicle inspections carry concealed weapons but are escorted by colleagues carrying automatic rifles. The vehicle checks also involve advanced sensors capable of detecting explosives or weapons, the sources said.

Other armed personnel, wearing US flag insignia, operate near the checkpoints. While they maintain a visible presence, they do not interact with Palestinians. However, they have the final say on whether a person is allowed to pass through, the sources added.

"The security personnel wore uniforms bearing the insignia of the American security company overseeing the checkpoint," Mr Jundia said. "Many of them were physically imposing, tall and muscular. Yet despite their intimidating appearance, they smiled at people, trying to appear reassuring."

A source within Gaza’s Ministry of Interior said the security force operates under the authority of ceasefire mediators, with no direct supervision from elsewhere.

"There is no direct co-ordination between us and the security forces stationed at the Netzarim checkpoint," the source said. "Their area of operation is clearly defined and any violations are reported to Hamas’s political leadership, who then communicate with the authorised mediators overseeing the security force."

Mahmoud Taha, a Hamas official in Lebanon, confirmed that "the observers present on the Netzarim axis are, of course, there in the context of the agreement that was reached through mediators.

“The agreement on observers came because of the Israeli fear that resistance fighters or weapons would cross from southern Gaza to the north,” he added.

But a source in a Palestinian faction said no information about the presence of US personnel had been communicated to armed groups. “We do not have data confirming the presence of American observers in Netzarim or Gaza,” the source added. “Any military deployment from abroad that is not in agreement with the resistance factions is not acceptable.”