Israeli forces intensified their bombardment across the Gaza Strip on Thursday, issuing new evacuation orders that prompted a fresh wave of displacement from northern Gaza, raising concerns among Palestinians about their ability to return.
Palestinian health officials reported that at least 10 individuals were killed and several others injured due to an Israeli airstrike on a school sheltering displaced families in the Shati refugee camp in Gaza City. There was no immediate response from Israeli authorities.
As Israeli tanks moved into Beit Lahiya, a month into their renewed offensive in northern Gaza, numerous families fled, seeking refuge in schools and other shelters in Gaza City with whatever belongings and food they could carry. Drones flew overhead, broadcasting evacuation orders, which were also disseminated through social media and sent as audio and text messages to residents’ phones, according to one displaced individual.
“After displacing most, if not all, of the people in Jabalia, they are now bombing everywhere, killing people on the roads and in their homes to force everyone out,” the man, identified only as Ahmed for safety reasons, told Reuters via a messaging app.
Palestinian authorities have accused Israel of executing a strategy of “ethnic cleansing.” Local residents report that no humanitarian assistance has reached Jabalia, Beit Lahiya, or Beit Hanoun since military operations commenced on October 5.
The Israeli Defense Forces assert that they were compelled to clear Jabalia and initiate operations in the adjacent Beit Lahiya on Wednesday to confront Hamas militants, who they claim have reestablished their presence in those areas.
The military refuted media claims suggesting that individuals evacuated from northern Gaza would be prohibited from returning, emphasizing that it continues to facilitate the delivery of aid to northern Gaza and the Jabalia region, where it is currently engaged in “intense combat.”
“The recent statement attributed to the IDF, indicating that residents of northern Gaza will not be permitted to return to their homes, is inaccurate and does not align with the IDF’s goals and principles,” the military stated. It also noted that 300 trucks of aid from the United Arab Emirates had arrived at the Ashdod port and would be dispatched into Gaza through the Erez crossing in the north and Kerem Shalom in the south.
The military issued new evacuation directives for residents in areas surrounding and within Gaza City, citing rocket fire from Palestinian militants as the reason. These directives specifically affected the northern section of the Shati camp and three additional neighborhoods in Gaza City.
Palestinian medical personnel reported that Israeli gunfire resulted in the deaths of six individuals in Jabalia, the largest of the enclave’s eight historic refugee camps, along with four fatalities in Beit Lahiya and seven in Rafah, located near the Egyptian border in southern Gaza.
According to the Israeli military, operations in Jabalia have led to the elimination of approximately 50 militants over the past day, and they have facilitated the safe exit of Palestinians from combat zones via organized routes.
Palestinian and U.N. representatives assert that there are no secure areas within the enclave, where the majority of its 2.3 million residents have been displaced from their homes.
Israel’s ground offensive aimed at dismantling the Islamist movement has persisted for over a year, transforming much of the Gaza Strip into a devastated region facing a humanitarian crisis.
Many Palestinians are anxiously observing whether Donald Trump’s election as U.S. president will bolster American support for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Trump positions himself as a more dependable ally for Israel compared to the current president, Joe Biden. Health authorities in the enclave report that over 43,300 Palestinians have lost their lives during more than a year of conflict in Gaza.
The conflict erupted following an attack by Hamas-led militants on Israel on October 7, 2023, resulting in approximately 1,200 fatalities and the abduction of 251 individuals to Gaza, as reported by Israeli sources.
Since the onset of the Hamas-Israel conflict in Gaza, violence has escalated in the Israeli-occupied West Bank.
In Tulkarm, Israeli forces fatally shot a Palestinian man during a raid, according to medical personnel, who also reported that an Israeli drone strike injured five others, including a mother and her son with learning disabilities.
Numerous Palestinians, comprising armed combatants, youths throwing stones, and innocent bystanders, have lost their lives in confrontations with Israeli security forces.
The Palestinian health ministry, which does not distinguish between civilians and combatants in its casualty reports, has recorded 775 deaths, including 167 children.
In the past year, dozens of Israelis have also been killed in attacks carried out by Palestinians on the streets.
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