DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — The Israeli army issued evacuation orders and targeted high-rise buildings in Gaza City on Saturday, urging Palestinians to flee south ahead of an escalating offensive to seize the city of nearly 1 million.
Aid groups warn that a large-scale evacuation would exacerbate the humanitarian crisis in Gaza City, which the world's leading hunger watchdog announced last month was officially suffering from famine as a result of Israeli restrictions on food aid.
Most Palestinian families have been repeatedly displaced in the nearly two-year-long war and say they have nowhere left to go. The Israeli military has previously bombed tent encampments designated as humanitarian zones.
“There is no safe tent, no safe house, no safe place, no safety at all,” said Nadia Marouf, who fled Israel’s offensive in the north with her children and resettled in Gaza City, only to see her tent destroyed Saturday in an Israeli airstrike targeting a building and its surrounding encampment.
Israeli military spokesperson Avichay Adraee called on Palestinians to flee to southern Gaza, announcing on social media that the army had redrawn the borders of a humanitarian zone to encompass the overcrowded encampment of Muwasi and parts of the southern city of Khan Younis. However, aid groups raised alarm about woefully inadequate shelter, sanitation, water, and food in Muwasi, where extensive bombardment has decimated civilian infrastructure.
On Saturday, medical officials reported receiving the bodies of additional Palestinians shot by Israeli forces while gathering for food at the Zikim crossing between Gaza and Israel. According to the Gaza Health Ministry, over 2,000 Palestinians have died at aid sites due to Israeli fire in recent months.
As Israeli forces continue their military operations, protests erupted across cities in Israel demanding the return of hostages held by Hamas. Demonstrators expressed outrage towards the government for not taking action towards achieving a deal for their release amidst escalating violence.
The ongoing war, which began when Hamas led an invasion into Israel on October 7, 2023, has thus far resulted in over 64,000 Palestinian casualties, including a significant portion of women and children.
