Israel's planned 'Morag corridor' threatens vital food source for Gaza

New Israeli military strategy would cut off access to the fertile farmlands of Rafah in the south

A map of Israel's 'corridors' in the Gaza Strip

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Israel's plan for its military to create a new line of control across southern Gaza, known as the Morag corridor, would not only cut off access to two of the Palestinian territory's three main crossing points for people and goods, but would also place its main food-growing area under Israeli control.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced the creation of the corridor on Wednesday as he declared Israel was changing course in its 18-month war against Hamas and other militant groups in the territory. The military was "shifting gears" and creating a second "Philadelphi route", he said in a video message, using Israel's name for the Salah Al Din corridor – a strip of land running along Gaza's southern border with Egypt that Israel seized last year. "The Israeli army is taking control of land, striking terrorists and destroying infrastructure," he said.

Israeli soldiers conducting operations in the Tel Al Sultan area of Rafah this week. Israeli Army via Reuters

The Morag corridor, named after a former Israeli settlement in the area known as Mouraj, will extend west from the Sufa border crossing with Israel to the Mediterranean, a distance of about 12km, and will separate the southernmost governorate of Rafah from Khan Younis to the north and the rest of the narrow coastal strip.

The area was designated as a military zone after Israel occupied Gaza in 1967, while Morag was part of the Gush Katif settlement bloc established in 1972. Initially serving as a military outpost to monitor Palestinian movements, it later became an agricultural co-operative in 1982, housing hundreds of greenhouses, until Israel pulled out of Gaza in 2005.

The new military corridor would effectively isolate 74 square kilometres – about 20 per cent of Gaza’s total land area of 360 sq km – and cut off access to the Karam Abu Salem crossing with Israel and the Rafah crossing with Egypt.

Lorries carry humanitarian aid for Gaza at the Karam Abu Salem crossing in Rafah after a ceasefire took hold. Reuters

More importantly, Israeli military control over the area would significantly affect Gaza’s food security. Rafah is one of the enclave's last remaining agricultural hubs, with vast farmlands, particularly in Al Mawasi region to the west. The military presence could severely disrupt food production and exacerbate shortages created by Israel's blockade on the entry of aid.

“Mouraj is not just a residential area, it is Gaza’s agricultural heartland and a crucial source of food production,” Muammar Hijazi, 51, a farmer from area, told The National.

Mr Hijazi said while much of Gaza’s farmland has been rendered inaccessible by the war, Israeli forces had never entered the Morag area, which remained a vital source of vegetables and crops for hundreds of thousands of Gazans struggling to find food.

“Losing control of this area would be catastrophic – not only for residents but also for the farmers whose livelihoods depend on it," he said. "For many, this land is their only means of survival.

A Palestinian boy walks through a tomato farm near Gaza's destroyed airport in Rafah. Reuters

“Mouraj’s land is exceptionally fertile and its underground water is remarkably pure, making it one of the best areas for agricultural production in Gaza. The region also contains some of the highest points in southern Gaza, providing a clear vantage over Rafah and Khan Younis – an invaluable strategic asset for the Israeli army.”

The area also has numerous underground wells that provided fresh water to residents and families displaced from other areas by the war. Should the Israeli military take full control, these water sources are at risk of destruction, further compounding Gaza’s dire water crisis.

Rashad Musbah, 35, a former government schoolteacher from the area, was forced to flee with his family to Khan Younis. “Throughout the war, Mouraj welcomed displaced people from across Gaza," he told The National. "They set up tents and took refuge in its lands. But today, we have all become displaced and the area has been occupied. We hear explosions there every day and the army is likely attempting to replicate the destruction seen in northern Gaza and other devastated areas.

"Since the beginning of the war, we have been praying that the occupation would not notice the area or take control of it because it was full of displaced people and residents. Moreover, it is Gaza’s breadbasket."

People fleeing Rafah arrive in Khan Younis after new Israeli eviction orders in southern Gaza. AFP

He said most of the area’s inhabitants were farmers and livestock breeders with no affiliation to armed groups.

“The [Israeli] occupation’s control over the area is purely strategic,” Mr Musbah said. "The army knows this region well because they controlled it before 2005 and withdrew as part of their disengagement from Gaza.

“The army had farms and a settlement in this area, and they are well aware of its significance and strategic location, as well as how controlling it could deprive Gaza’s people of its resources.”