Jerusalem: The Israeli military has ordered another mass evacuation in large areas around Khan Younis in southern Gaza, saying its forces will soon operate there in response to Palestinian rocket fire.
The orders announced Thursday cover large areas in and around Khan Younis, Gaza’s second-largest city, which suffered widespread destruction during air and ground operations earlier this year.
Associated Press video captured loud blasts and smoke rising over the city on Thursday.
Israeli forces have repeatedly returned to heavily destroyed areas of Gaza where they had fought earlier battles against Hamas and other militants since the start of the 10-month-old war. The military ordered an evacuation of much of Khan Younis in early July. The vast majority of Gaza’s population of 2.3 million people has been displaced in the war, often multiple times, and hundreds of thousands are packed into squalid tent camps.
Others have remained in their homes despite being ordered to leave, saying nowhere in the isolated coastal territory feels safe.
Israeli forces have repeatedly returned to heavily destroyed areas of Gaza where they had fought earlier battles against Hamas and other militants since the start of the 10-month-old war.
Gaza faces a severe humanitarian crisis with Israeli restrictions on aid and ongoing fighting limiting access to crucial medical, food and other supplies. The Health Ministry says the death toll in the territory is nearing 40,000.
Regional tensions have soared since Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh was killed July 31 in Iran by a presumed Israeli strike. Retaliation has been expected. French President Emmanuel Macron beseeched Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian in a phone call to do everything in his power to avoid a new military escalation that he said would do lasting damage to regional stability.
World leaders have been pushing for a cease-fire in Gaza, and United States President Joe Biden spoke with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi on Tuesday about their hopes for a deal calming tensions in the Middle East. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told his Cabinet over the weekend that Israel is already in a “multi-front war” with Iran and its proxies.
Rights group says Israeli soldiers killed at least 7 people sheltering in a Gaza City home
Human Rights Watch says Israeli soldiers killed at least seven people and severely wounded two, including a 5-year-old, when they attacked a home in Gaza City where a Palestinian family was sheltering in December.
The New York-based rights group released a report Thursday based on interviews with two members of the al-Khalidi family who witnessed the attack, and video footage released by the Israeli military that placed forces in the vicinity of the home at the time.
The family members said there were no militants or weapons inside the house, and that the family had no connection to any armed group. They said the troops barged in without warning, hurling grenades and opening fire.
A pregnant woman was among those killed, and the 5-year-old is being treated for severe injuries in Qatar.
There was no immediate comment from the Israeli military, and Human Rights Watch said the army had not responded to detailed questions sent in July.
Israel says it tries to avoid harming civilians as it seeks to destroy Hamas following the militant group’s October 7 attack into Israel, which triggered the ongoing war. But Israel’s relentless aerial bombardment and ground operations have wiped out entire Palestinian families. The International Court of Justice is investigating allegations that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza, something Israel has adamantly denied.
