Israel orders evacuations as it widens offensive but Palestinians are running out of places to go
Source: Associated Press
Israel orders evacuations as it widens offensive but Palestinians are running out of places to go
BY WAFAA SHURAFA AND SAMY MAGDY
Updated 8:47 AM EST, December 4, 2023
DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — Israel’s military renewed calls Monday for mass evacuations from the southern town of Khan Younis, where tens of thousands of displaced Palestinians have sought refuge in recent weeks, as it widened its ground offensive and bombarded targets across the Gaza Strip.
The expanded operations, following the expiration of a weeklong cease-fire, are aimed at eliminating Gaza’s Hamas rulers, whose Oct. 7 attack into Israel triggered the deadliest Israeli-Palestinian violence in decades. The war has already killed thousands of Palestinians and displaced over three-fourths of the territory’s population of 2.3 million people, who are running out of safe places to go.
Already under mounting pressure from its top ally, the United States, Israel appears to be racing to strike a death blow against Hamas — if that’s possible, given the group’s deep roots in Palestinian society — before any new cease-fire. But the mounting toll of the fighting, which Palestinian health officials say has killed several hundred civilians since the truce ended on Friday, is likely to further increase international pressure to return to the negotiating table.
-snip-
As Israel calls for more areas to be evacuated, it’s not clear where people can go. Already shelters are overwhelmed, and both Israel and neighboring Egypt have refused to accept any refugees.
-snip-
Read more: https://apnews.com/article/israel-hamas-war-news-12-04-2023-ece85568ce36cb2315f26b10adda30fa
