Yet again, tens of thousands of people in Gaza are on the move, as the Israeli military issues fresh evacuation orders for a number of areas in Gaza City.
Over the past 10 days, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) has issued instructions for hundreds of thousands of people in Khan Younis in the south, Shujaya in central Gaza and the several neighborhoods of Gaza City to leave.
The effect has been to increase the total number of displaced people in Gaza, from 1.7 million in May to an estimated 1.9 million now, according to the UN. Approximately nine out of 10 people in Gaza are now estimated to be internally displaced, many of them multiple times.
“Mass displacement has been predominantly driven by evacuation orders issued by the Israeli military, extensive destruction of both private and public infrastructure, restricted access to essential services, and the persistent fear of ongoing hostilities,” according to the most recent assessment by the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).
It’s unclear how many people in Gaza City have heeded the latest evacuation order. Many civilians are wary of leaving whatever shelter they have for an uncertain journey to an even more uncertain fate living on the streets or in the overcrowded, unsanitary tent villages that pop up with each evacuation order.
[A convoy maneuvers inside the Gaza Strip, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas, as seen from Israel, July 2, 2024.]
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The IDF has said that evacuation orders are necessary so that civilians don’t get caught up in its renewed operations in areas where Hamas is seeking to re-establish a presence. The IDF insists it goes to great lengths to avoid civilian casualties.
Hamas has said the evacuations threaten to return negotiations for a ceasefire and hostage deal to “point zero.”
Khader Al Za’anoun, a journalist with Wafa, the official Palestinian news agency, told CNN that late on Sunday people in the Tuffah, Old City and Daraj neighborhoods had been instructed to move to “known shelters in the west of Gaza City.”
But he said the large-scale evacuation came amid drone- and air-strikes.
“It was terrifying, people were running, some were in wheelchairs, everyone in panic not knowing where to go. The heavy bombardments were close, and the smoke was filling the skies,” Al Za’anoun told CNN after reaching the port area.
A journey full of danger
The strikes continued all night, along with repeated gunfire in areas where people were sheltering.
“I decided to wait until the morning and not move due to the dangerous situation,” Al Za’anoun said.
But at dawn airstrikes targeted a high-rise building close to where he and his family and many other displaced people were taking shelter.
“At that moment, to protect the lives of my family, I decided to leave the place and evacuate to the port area in the west of the city in a journey full of danger.”
Al Za’anoun send photographs of his family walking through ruined streets as he dragged a pushchair with their remaining possessions.
The IDF confirmed to CNN that the evacuation order for parts of Gaza City was the third in the past 10 days.
CNN