Israel’s defense minister said he told the military to advance plans for what he called a “humanitarian city” built on the ruins of Rafah in southern Gaza, according to reports in Israeli media.

One by one, displaced Gazans would pass through security checkpoints where they would be searched for weapons or signs of links to Hamas before being allowed into a new “humanitarian city” built on ruins.

The zone would initially house nearly 600,000 displaced Palestinians who were forced to flee to the Al-Mawasi area along the coast of southern Gaza. A screening will be done to ascertain that no one e