Israel orders forced displacement of Palestinians in Gaza City ahead of planned assault
Gaza City, Gaza - The Israeli army told Gaza City residents to flee to a "humanitarian zone" in the south on Saturday ahead of a planned attack to capture the territory's largest urban center.
The military gave no timeline for the assault, and has previously indicated it would not be announced in advance in order to maintain the element of surprise.
"Take this opportunity to move early to the (Al-Mawasi) humanitarian zone and join the thousands of people who have already gone there," military spokesperson Avichay Adraee said on social media.
The army said separately that Al-Mawasi, on Gaza's southern coast, has "field hospitals, water pipelines, and desalination facilities, alongside the continued supply of food, tents, medicines, and medical equipment."
The military said relief efforts there "will continue on an ongoing basis in cooperation with the UN and international organizations, in parallel to the expansion of the ground operation."
Israel first declared Al-Mawasi a safe zone early in its siege, but has carried out repeated strikes there since.
Gaza City residents told AFP on Saturday that they believed it made little difference whether they stayed or fled.
"Some say we should evacuate, others say we should stay," said Abdel Nasser Mushtaha (48), a resident of the city's Zeitoun neighborhood now sheltering in a tent in the Rimal area.
"But everywhere in Gaza there are bombings and deaths. For the past year-and-a-half, the worst bombings that caused massacres of civilians have been in Al-Mawasi, this so-called humanitarian zone," he added.
"It no longer makes any difference to us," said his daughter Samia Mushtaha (20). "Wherever we go, death pursues us, whether by bombing or hunger."
Israel ramps up attacks on Gaza City
The Israeli military's call for people to leave comes as it steps up its attacks around Gaza City despite mounting domestic and international outrage over its nearly two-year assault.
Hamas agreed last month to a proposal for a temporary ceasefire and staggered hostage releases, but Israel has demanded the group release all the hostages at once, disarm and relinquish control of Gaza, among other conditions.
At the White House on Friday, President Donald Trump said the US was in talks with Hamas over the captives being held in Gaza.
"We're in very deep negotiation with Hamas," Trump told reporters in the Oval Office.
"There could be some (hostages) that have recently died, is what I'm hearing. I hope that's wrong, but you have over 30 bodies in this negotiation," he said.
The Israeli military says 47 hostages remain in Gaza, including 25 believed to be dead.
Meanwhile, Israel is said to hold thousands of Palestinians in administrative detention – a form of arbitrary detention.
"We said let them all out right now, let them all out, and much better things will happen for them," Trump said of the Israeli hostages. "But if you don't let them all out, it's going to be a tough situation, it's going to be nasty."
Israel accused of genocide and engineering famine in Gaza
The UN estimates nearly one million people remain in and around Gaza City, where it declared a famine last month. It has warned of a looming "disaster" if the Israeli assault proceeds.
Israel has said it expects the assault to displace a million people further south.
The vast majority of Gaza's population of more than two million people have been forcibly displaced at least once in the last two years.
Israel has killed at least 64,300 Palestinians in that time, according to the territory's health ministry, though the true number is believed to be far higher.
There is growing consensus among human rights organizations and experts that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza.
In a resolution passed late last month, the International Association of Genocide Scholars declared that Israel's atrocities in Gaza "meet the legal definition of genocide."
"Israel is pressing ahead with its cruel and deadly assault on Gaza City with utter disregard for Palestinian civilians, amidst a famine of its own making, defying repeated calls from humanitarian and human rights organizations, UN officials and world leaders to stop its onslaught," said Erika Guevara Rosas, Amnesty International's senior director for research, advocacy, policy and campaigns.
"In doing so, Israel is revealing its chilling determination to continue its genocide against Palestinians in Gaza."
Cover photo: Omar AL-QATTAA / AFP