“orange line”

As Israel encroaches upon Gaza, the UN should be reckoning with its colonial complicity

Spread the love

This work by Middle East Monitor is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

Palestinian worshippers gather to perform the Eid al-Adha (Feast of Sacrifice) prayer near the ruins of the Yarmouk Mosque, which was destroyed in Israeli attacks, in the Sheikh Radwan neighborhood of Gaza City, Palestine, on May 27, 2026. [Saeed M. M. T. Jaras – Anadolu Agency]

by Ramona Wadi  walzerscent

“A hundred percent of Gaza should be for the Palestinian people, right? That’s what we want to see. And we’ve been calling on Israel to pull back from its occupation from the so-called yellow line and that will continue to be our position,” UN Spokesperson Stephane Dujarric stated last week.

Dujarric’s comments were uttered after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stated he ordered the Israeli military to encroach further on Gaza, to 70 percent of the territory. The Yellow Line, which Dujarric mentioned, is already an expired demarcation, while the Orange Line, recently briefly making news headlines, is the physically unmarked border that will determine Israel’s entire military occupation of Gaza. Further Israeli colonial expansion has the backing of the US Board of Peace, led by Nickolay Mladenov, who has already absolved Israel from not keeping to the ceasefire terms since Hamas refused to disarm.

Since Mladenov’s narrative remained unchallenged, Netanyahu does not even have to justify Israel’s military occupation of Gaza, which sets the scene for recolonising the area.

Mladenov already warned that Hamas would be blamed for any repercussions after refusing to disarm, bringing the narrative back to the start of the genocide. For the UN, the deception works well. It allows Israel’s ongoing security narrative unlimited and unwarranted justification. Hamas takes the blame for Israel’s military occupation, and the UN maintains relevance through its humanitarian paradigm for a while longer.

UN officials can embellish their rhetoric, but their credibility has long been pulverised. If one goes back to history, as should be done, ignoring Palestinian self-determination to vote for partition in 1947 represents the foundations of the lie upon which all UN rhetoric is based. Palestine has been repeatedly throttled by the UN to pave the way for Zionist colonial encroachment.

READ: The EU’s fragmented focus rewards colonial violence

The Yellow Line, which Dujarric referred to, was only the beginning of the visible manifestation of Israel’s territorial appropriation. Calling upon Israel to pull back from the Yellow Line when military occupation has already expanded ignores the fact that Israel had already moved past the demarcation which was linked to purportedly rebuilding Gaza.

The question, therefore, is not what the UN’s spoken position is, but what lies beneath its rhetoric, which can be linked to decades of the international community’s approval and endorsement of various forms of Israeli colonial violence.

The Yellow Line and the Orange Line are not just demarcations; they are proof of Israel’s ongoing forced transfer of the Palestinian people. Genocide was the first step; military occupation of utterly destroyed territory is the second. Instead of talking about the Yellow Line, for example, can UN spokespersons and officials recognise the political implications of the Palestinian people’s forced displacement from Gaza? Can UN officials speak of Palestinians outside of the humanitarian paradigm, or as appendages to what Israel is planning for Gaza? What the UN allegedly wants is not the main issue here, and neither should it be. Palestinians are being forced out of Gaza and restricted into a humanitarian paradigm that robbed them of rights alongside land. That is what Dujarric should have addressed – the forced absence of the Palestinian people’s political agency, which facilitates ongoing colonisation, as the UN envisaged since 1947.

The views expressed in this article belong to the author and do not necessarily reflect the editorial policy of Middle East Monitor.

This work by Middle East Monitor is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

Keir Starmer explains that UK is actively supporting Israel's genocidal expansion and repeats his previous quotation that he supports Zionism "without qualification". Keir Starmer said “I said it loud and clear – and meant it – that I support Zionism without qualification.” here: https://www.jewishnews.co.uk/keir-starmer-interview-i-will-work-to-eradicate-antisemitism-from-day-one/
Keir Starmer explains that UK is actively supporting Israel’s genocidal expansion and repeats his previous quotation that he supports Zionism “without qualification”. Keir Starmer said “I said it loud and clear – and meant it – that I support Zionism without qualification.” here: https://www.jewishnews.co.uk/keir-starmer-interview-i-will-work-to-eradicate-antisemitism-from-day-one/
Donald Trump sings and dances, says that it's fun to kill everyone ... unless he gets distracted or falls asleep.
Donald Trump sings and dances, says that it’s fun to kill everyone … unless he gets distracted or falls asleep.

Continue ReadingAs Israel encroaches upon Gaza, the UN should be reckoning with its colonial complicity

EU rejects Israel’s ‘orange line’ in Gaza

Spread the love

This work by Middle East Monitor is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License. 

European Commission spokesperson Anouar El Anouni. [Photo/AA]

The European Union has rejected any change to territorial control in the Gaza Strip, following Israel’s introduction of what it calls the “orange line”, an EU spokesperson said on Monday.

Anouar El Anouni, spokesperson for EU foreign affairs, made the remarks in response to a question from Anadolu Agency about the new Israeli measure, which reportedly expands its control to more than 60 per cent of Gaza, instead of carrying out further withdrawals required under the peace agreement.

He stressed that the EU continues to underline the importance of unifying Gaza with the West Bank under the administration of the Palestinian Authority.

El Anouni added that the bloc is renewing its call for the urgent implementation of the Gaza peace plan, expressing deep concern over the ongoing humanitarian crisis in the territory.

He also urged Israel to allow immediate, large-scale and unhindered access for humanitarian aid into Gaza, and to ensure its sustainable distribution.

Recently, the Israeli army introduced what has become known as the “orange line”, which goes beyond the “yellow line” set out in the ceasefire agreement in force since 10 October 2025.

Under the agreement, the “yellow line” separates areas under Israeli military control in the east from zones where Palestinians are allowed to be present in the west, covering around 53 per cent of the territory.

However, Israel has not adhered to this arrangement, gradually advancing beyond the yellow line into deeper parts of Gaza, in an area now referred to as the “orange line”.

READ: Italy opens probe into activists’ detention after Gaza aid flotilla interception

This work by Middle East Monitor is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License. 

Donald Trump calls for help from NATO allies in securing the Strait of Hormuz despite saying on 7 March 2026 that they don't need people to join wars after they've already won. He's challenged with the claim that he lies as much as the IDF.
Donald Trump calls for help from NATO allies in securing the Strait of Hormuz despite saying on 7 March 2026 that they don’t need people to join wars after they’ve already won. He’s challenged with the claim that he lies as much as the IDF.
Keir Starmer explains that UK is actively supporting Israel's genocidal expansion and repeats his previous quotation that he supports Zionism "without qualification". Keir Starmer said “I said it loud and clear – and meant it – that I support Zionism without qualification.” here: https://www.jewishnews.co.uk/keir-starmer-interview-i-will-work-to-eradicate-antisemitism-from-day-one/
Keir Starmer explains that UK is actively supporting Israel’s genocidal expansion and repeats his previous quotation that he supports Zionism “without qualification”. Keir Starmer said “I said it loud and clear – and meant it – that I support Zionism without qualification.” here: https://www.jewishnews.co.uk/keir-starmer-interview-i-will-work-to-eradicate-antisemitism-from-day-one/
Keir Starmer says that he's banning words and phrases now as well as placards.
Keir Starmer says that he’s banning words and phrases now as well as placards.

Continue ReadingEU rejects Israel’s ‘orange line’ in Gaza