Israel is committed to allowing Gazan non-combatants who have left the region to return to the Northern Gaza Strip when it is secured, an Israeli spokesman said.
Israeli spokesman Eylon Levy addressed the issue at his Dec. 1 daily briefing, responding to a Globe Banner question asking whether anything would prevent allowing Gazans to return home once it is safe.
“We expect that when the fighting stops and it is safe for people to be able to return they will return and we will begin a process of reconstruction together with the international community," Levy said.
U.S. officials have expressed public concern over non-combatants in the Gaza Strip. Levy didn't address whether allowing a return of Gazans to the north would be in response to U.S. pressure.
"The northern gaza strip at the moment is still an active war zone. The IDF is continuting with its operations to totally eliminate HAMAS' infrastructure," Levy said.
Levy said any reconstruction funding in the north would be scrutinized to ensure concrete goes to home and public infrastructre development, not that of tunnels and rockets.
North Gaza is home to 255,000 people.
On Sunday, Israel issued evacuation orders in several Northern Gaza Strip neighborhoods after HAMAS rocket fire ended a temporary cease fire.
The Israeli Defense Force (IDF) ordered "hundreds" of graffiti inscriptions sprayed by its soldiers in the North Gaza removed.
"In the graffiti inscriptions throughout the northern Gaza Strip, (IDF) fighters sprayed various messages, including political ones such as return to Gush Katif," reported YNET.
Gush Katif was a block of Israeli settlements in the southern Gaza Strip. In Aug. 2005, the IDF forcibly removed approximately 8,600 Jewish residents from the area and their communities were demolished.
At a press conference on Thursday in Tel Aviv, U.S. Secretary of State Tony Blinken related he cautioned PM Netanyahu Tel Aviv about civilian displacement and deaths.
“Intent matters, but so does the result," Blinken said.