Two days after the seven-day pause in the fighting ended, there are no signs of a new pause.
On Sunday, the Israeli military expanded its evacuation call for residents in and around Gaza’s second-largest city of Khan Yunis, as well as five other areas. Following the call, Israel continued its bombardment of both northern and southern Gaza.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says according Times of Israel that the bombings are part of the hostage negotiations the country left on Saturday.
– We continue to talk to the enemy about the release of the hostages – we let the weapons do the talking.
No safe places in Gaza
The UN warns that the safe zones to which Israel is urging Gazans to go are overcrowded.
– As a result of Israel’s aggression and the country’s order for people to leave the north and parts of southern Gaza, hundreds of thousands are being forced to take refuge in increasingly smaller areas in southern Gaza, says UN human rights chief Volker Türk.
– I repeat: There are no safe places in Gaza, he adds.
According to the UN’s humanitarian agency Ocha’s latest calculations, around 1.8 million – more than three quarters of Gaza’s population – are internally displaced.
The Israeli military (IDF) states that since the beginning of the war almost two months ago, it has carried out “approximately 10,000 attacks” in Gaza.
Found 800 tunnel shafts
On Sunday, according to a statement, tunnel shafts, command centers and weapons warehouses were targeted, among other things. The IDF says since October 27 it has found a total of 800 descents to the tunnels it claims Hamas uses for its warfare in Gaza.
“The tunnel shafts were located in civilian areas, several of which were in or near civilian houses and structures, such as schools, kindergartens, mosques and playgrounds,” the IDF said in a statement, saying it had destroyed more than half of the entrances.
At the same time, American representatives repeatedly stress the importance of Israel’s continuing offensive to do everything its military can to protect Palestinian civilians.
“Too many innocent Palestinians have been killed,” Vice President Kamala Harris said at the major climate conference in Dubai on Saturday, citing horrific images and reports from Gaza.