Metropolis Desk-
Following weeks of bombardment and fierce fighting with Hamas militants, thousands of civilians in southern Gaza fled in search of safety. On Sunday, Israeli forces advanced into this area.
The humanitarian situation in the Palestinian territory has been described as “apocalyptic” by aid organizations, who warn that disease and starvation could soon overwhelm the region. Gaza’s governing group, Hamas, claimed on Sunday that Israel had carried out several “very violent raids” that were directed at the southern city of Khan Yunis and the route that leads from it to Rafah, which is close to Egypt’s border.
Early on Sunday, an AFP journalist reported strikes in southern Gaza.
The latest figures from Gaza’s health ministry, run by Hamas, show that in two months of fighting, at least 17,700 people have died, most of them women and children.
Following Hamas’ historic attacks on October 7, in which militants breached Gaza’s border with military precision, killing roughly 1,200 people and taking hostages, Israeli officials vowed to destroy the organization.
Israel announced on Saturday that there are still 137 prisoners in Palestinian territory.
“We fled to the Old City, everything was just strikes and destruction… we didn’t know where to go,” he recalled.
“We don’t know if they will storm the hospital again.”
71 dead bodies had arrived at the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in Deir al-Balah over the course of the previous day, according to Hamas health officials on Saturday in central Gaza.
Also, according to the health authorities, 62 dead bodies had been brought to Khan Yunis’ Nasser Hospital from the southern part of the region. A child was seen on a makeshift stretcher and other patients were waiting for treatment on the floor, according to an AFP correspondent at Nasser Hospital, while firefighters outside attempted to put out a burning building that had been struck by an Israeli strike.
Bushra Khalidi of Oxfam stated that the situation “is not just a catastrophe, it’s apocalyptic”.
Of the 2.4 million people living in Gaza, an estimated 1.9 million are displaced.
Since they are unable to leave the small area, they have expanded Rafah, close to the Egyptian border, into a sizable camp.
The conflict has forced almost a million children to flee their homes, according to a statement released by the UN children’s agency on Saturday.
Children are running out of safe places to go as the fighting in southern Gaza heats up, a region where Israel had earlier urged civilians to seek shelter.
“They are now being pushed further and further south into tiny, overcrowded areas without water, food, or protection, putting them at increased risk of respiratory infections and waterborne disease,” UNICEF’s Adele Khodr said.
“The restrictions and challenges being placed on the delivery of lifesaving aid going into and across the Gaza Strip are another death sentence for children.” Herzi Halevi, the chief of the Israeli army, ordered his troops to “press harder” in their campaign as concern over the humanitarian situation in Gaza grew.
“We’re seeing more and more terrorists killed, more and more terrorists wounded, and in recent days we’re seeing terrorists surrendering — this is a sign their network’s falling apart,” he stated during a ceremony in Jerusalem.
Tzachi Hanegbi, the national security advisor, stated on Israeli TV that 7,000 “terrorists” had been slain without providing more details about the source of the information.
Some Israelis staged a pro-peace demonstration in Tel Aviv.
Hundreds more people flocked to what is now known as Hostages Square, some carrying signs that read “They trust us to get them out of hell” and pleading for help to free the Hamas prisoners.
The Israeli army reports that it has lost 93 soldiers in the campaign and that two more have been injured, following a disastrous attempt to free hostages on Thursday night.
It was confirmed by Hamas that Sahar Baruch, a 25-year-old hostage in Beeri, one of the hardest-hit kibbutz communities on October 7, had perished in the operation.
Source- AFP
