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full screen People flee Khan Yunis during the first evacuation order of the week, Monday, July 22. Photo: Abdel Kareem Hana/AP/TT
Israel’s military orders the evacuation of yet another area in a humanitarian zone in Khan Yunis.
The military is planning an operation in the area, where they say Hamas fighters are. In the area there is also a makeshift tent camp where thousands of Palestinians seek shelter from Israeli bombs.
The order comes in response to rocket fire that Israel says has been fired from the area. Khan Yunis has been the focus of a new Israeli military offensive, which Israel says is aimed at combating “Hamas’ efforts to regroup its forces there.”
It is the second evacuation in a week in the area and by Wednesday at least 80 people had been killed, according to figures from the Hamas-run health ministry. Both Unrwa and the UN humanitarian agency Ocha confirm that around 150,000 people have already fled the area.
The area is part of a 60 square kilometer “humanitarian zone” where Israel has told Palestinians to flee throughout the war. Much of the area is covered in tent camps, and some 1.8 million Palestinians take shelter there, according to Israeli estimates.
The Israeli army states in a statement that the military has “eliminated several terrorists” during its operation in the area.
Many Palestinians have repeatedly been forced to leave their homes, trying to reach safety during the war that broke out after Hamas’ terrorist act against Israel on October 7.