The military claims it is forcibly relocating Palestinians from Gaza City “to ensure their safety”, as health authorities report deadly attacks in areas previously designated as safe zones.
The Israeli military announced on Saturday that it would begin preparations to forcibly displace Palestinians from Gaza City. Health officials said at least 40 people were killed in recent attacks, including a baby in a tent and people seeking help.
This announcement came just days after Israel announced plans to launch a new offensive to seize control of Gaza City, the largest city in the region, sparking international alarm. The Israeli offensive has already forced most of the population to flee, killed tens of thousands of civilians, and sparked famine.
The Israeli military claimed on Saturday that tents and other shelters would be provided to Gaza City residents starting Sunday, ahead of their relocation from the combat zone south of Gaza City “to ensure their safety.” However, it did not specify when the mass relocation would begin.
Israel has repeatedly bombed areas it has declared safe zones. On Saturday, an Israeli airstrike struck a tent in al-Muwashi, southern Gaza, previously designated a humanitarian zone by Israel, killing a girl and her parents, according to Nasser Hospital officials and witnesses.
“It’s been two and a half months. What on earth have you done?” asked her neighbor, Pati Schweir. “These are civilians in the safe zone.”
The Israeli military said it could not comment on the airstrike without more information.
After Israel forced people into the desolate al-Muwash, it became one of the most densely populated areas in Gaza. However, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced last week that Israel planned to expand its military offensive to include Gaza City and the “central camp,” likely referring to the Nusseirat and Bureiz refugee camps currently under construction in central Gaza.
According to the Civil Defense Authority, at least 13 Palestinians killed on Saturday were shot by soldiers while waiting for food aid near distribution centers in the north and south.
The Ministry of Health announced on Saturday that 11 more malnutrition-related deaths had occurred in the Gaza Strip over the past 24 hours, including at least one child. This brings the total number of malnutrition-related deaths caused by the Israeli aid blockade to 251.
In recent days, Gaza residents have reported increased airstrikes targeting residential areas, particularly in the east and south, and the Zaytun district. Hamas said on Saturday that its forces were attacking the area with fighter jets, artillery, and drones.
Civil defense spokesman Mahmoud Bassal said the situation in Zaytun was rapidly deteriorating due to intensive Israeli bombing, with residents having little or no access to food and water.
He said there were an estimated 50,000 people in Gaza, “most of whom are without food and water” and “lacking even basic necessities.”
“I don’t know how to sleep,” said 40-year-old Gasan Kashko, who is taking shelter with his family in a nearby school building. He said there are “constant explosions” from airstrikes and tank shelling.
Vassal said Israel is carrying out ethnic cleansing in Zaytun. While the Israeli military claims to be complying with international law, Israeli authorities and other human rights groups claim the Israeli military is committing genocide.
Military authorities announced on Saturday that after review by Defense Ministry officials, UN and other international aid organizations will transport shelter equipment through the Kerem Shalom checkpoint in southern Gaza. Israeli inspections and bureaucracy have prevented much aid from reaching the area so far.
A spokesperson for the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA) expressed concern over Israel’s plan to relocate civilians to southern Gaza, saying it would only exacerbate the suffering.
However, the UN acknowledged Israel’s desperate need for shelter and stated that tents and other shelter equipment would be allowed back into the Gaza Strip. “The UN and its partners will seize the opportunity this presents,” the UN said.
The United Nations warned Thursday that if the Gaza City plan goes ahead, thousands of families already facing dire humanitarian conditions could be pushed to the brink.
Palestinian and UN officials insist that no part of the region is safe, including the southern Gaza Strip, where Israel has ordered residents to relocate.
Military authorities declined to answer questions about whether the shelters were intended for Gaza City’s population, currently estimated at about 1 million, and whether the southern Gaza Strip area where they would be relocated, Rafah, bordering Egypt, was the location.
Israeli Defense Minister Yisrael Katz said on Saturday that plans for a new offensive were still being developed.
Islamic Jihad, a Palestinian militant group allied with Hamas, condemned the military’s announcement as “a blatant flouting of international conventions as part of a brutal offensive to seize Gaza.”
Protests are expected across Israel on Sunday demanding the release of hostages and an end to the war, and many companies, municipalities and universities have announced they will support workers on strike.
Families of Israeli hostages held by Hamas declared a “national strike day” on Sunday as frustration with the war grows. They fear the upcoming offensive will further endanger the 50 hostages remaining in Gaza, of whom only 20 are believed to be alive.
