Soledad O'BrienThe Israeli army has asked all residents of Gaza City to evacuate southwards to the center of the Gaza Strip amid intensifying operations in the north.
The UN said it was deeply concerned by the evacuation orders. It is the second time since the beginning of the war that the evacuation of the entire city of Gaza has been called for.
Over the past two weeks, Israeli forces have re-entered several districts where the military believes Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad fighters have regrouped since the start of the year.
Hossam Badran, a senior Hamas official, told AFP that Israel was “trying to put pressure on the negotiations by intensifying bombing operations, movements and committing massacres”.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stressed Israel’s commitment to a deal as long as “Israel’s red lines are preserved.”
250,000 People Are Still In Gaza City
According to the quoted source, it is estimated that more than a quarter of a million people are still living in Gaza City, and some have been seen evacuating to the south.
Some residents say they are unwilling to leave. ” I will not leave Gaza. I won’t make the stupid mistake others have made. Israeli rockets don’t differentiate between north and south ,” 47-year-old resident Ibrahim al-Barbari told the BBC.
“If death is the fate of me and my children, we will die with honor and dignity in our homes,” he said.
The Palestinian Red Crescent said it had received calls from some residents who were unable to leave their homes due to the intensity of the shelling.
“Information coming from Gaza City shows that residents are living in tragic conditions. [Israeli] occupation forces continue to hit residential neighborhoods and displace people from their homes and shelters ,” she said.
In a statement issued on Wednesday, July 10, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said its troops ” conducted an anti-terrorist operation” overnight against Hamas and PIJ fighters operating inside a headquarters of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (Unrwa) from Gaza City.
Troops opened a “defined corridor to facilitate the evacuation of civilians” from the area before entering the structure and “eliminated the terrorists in hand-to-hand combat.”
Defense Minister Yoav Gallant also said that 60 percent of Hamas fighters have been killed or wounded since the start of Israel’s offensive.
The UN Human Rights Office said it was “appalled” by the IDF’s orders for residents to be evacuated to “areas where Israeli military operations are ongoing and where civilians continue to be killed and injured”.
According to UN representatives, the Deir al-Balah area is already severely overcrowded with Palestinians displaced from other areas of Gaza and that there is little infrastructure and limited access to humanitarian assistance.
Associated Press
Johanna Liander
Sophie Rosemont
Alexis Parker