Heavy fighting has resumed in Gaza after a week-long pause in hostilities between Israel and Hamas, with Palestinians left with no safe place to shelter amid the growing offensive and blaring sirens in southern Gaza. Israel.
Minutes after the truce expired on Friday, the Israeli army began bombarding Gaza, accusing Hamas of violating the pause by launching rockets.
Tel Aviv Tribune journalists in the enclave reported heavy Israeli fire and bombardment in northern, central and southern Gaza.
“The Gaza Strip is under heavy artillery and even aerial bombardment from the (Israeli) occupying forces,” Tel Aviv Tribune’s Tareq Abu Azzoum said from Khan Younis in southern Gaza. “In the coming hours, we could see a sharp increase in the number of Israeli strikes on the territory. »
Israel dropped leaflets in parts of southern Gaza, warning civilians to evacuate south towards Rafah, on the border with Egypt. Leaflets dropped in Khan Younis claim the city is now a “dangerous combat zone.”
Until the truce that began on November 24, Israel’s response to the October 7 Hamas attack focused largely on northern Gaza. Thousands of residents fled south, finding refuge in areas such as Khan Younis. But with around 1.7 million people displaced, Palestinians face an untenable situation, with no possibility of returning to the north and attacks across the enclave.
“Currently, sounds of Israeli explosions can be heard in the south, an area that Israeli authorities had recommended as safe for civilians to flee,” Abu Azzoum said.
“This (resumption of fighting) offers the Palestinians only one option: to live again under Israeli bombardments which will destroy all means of life inside the Gaza Strip,” he added.
Khan Younis was also targeted by Israeli air raids on Friday.
Mansour Shouman, a resident of Khan Younis, said he had been “surrounded by tens of thousands” of people who had come to Nasser Hospital to seek shelter.
Shouman, who told Tel Aviv Tribune he took refuge in a tent next to the maternity ward, said more than “10 people were killed (and) taken in ambulances near my house.”
“There is a general feeling of anxiety among civilians here, people don’t know what will happen next. The belief is that negotiations are still ongoing. People are hoping that a ceasefire will be respected in the next few hours,” Shouman said.
He added that people are staying wherever they are because it is too dangerous to travel anywhere.
“Despite all the challenges, the Palestinians remain loyal to their land here, they do not want the events of 1948 and 1967 to happen again. We are not leaving our land to go anywhere, we will try to fight against what is done occupation here,” Shouman said. said.
“People are asking, ‘Where should we go?’ Gaza is not prepared for all this,” said journalist Hind Khoudary, reporting from Khan Younis.
As it prepares for the next stage of the war, the Israeli military also released a map dividing Gaza into hundreds of small areas, saying these individual areas will be used to inform Palestinian civilians about active fighting.
According to a statement on the army’s website, Palestinians are urged to follow security updates in the new areas. Anyone living in or near one of the numbered zones should follow the instructions issued by the military for that zone, the statement said.
UNICEF spokesperson James Elder, who is in Khan Younis, told Tel Aviv Tribune that Palestinians in Gaza are once again filled with fear after the resumption of the Israeli military offensive.
Speaking from outside Nasser Hospital, he said ambulances had already started transporting people to the enclave’s largest still active compound.
“Hospital staff are obviously already working 24/7,” he said.
“This hospital, despite the immense efforts of its courageous health staff, cannot withstand another assault. People cannot endure another assault.
Elder also said that thousands of people are sleeping at Nasser Hospital – in addition to the fact that it is operating at 200% capacity for patients who need medical care.
Ceasefire in effect #Gaza. Attacks near this hospital. Consistent bombardment. Has humanity abandoned the children of Gaza?! 😔 pic.twitter.com/dsyvQeBEWx
– James Elder (@1james_elder) December 1, 2023
Gaza’s health ministry said Friday that Israeli airstrikes had killed at least 54 people in the strip.
More than 15,000 Palestinians, including more than 6,150 children, have been killed in Gaza since October 7. In Israel, the official death toll stands at around 1,200.