‘Bitter situation’: Families flee amid escalating Israeli attacks on Gaza City
In Gaza City, thousands of Palestinians have left their homes as Israeli forces have escalated shelling on the Sabra and Tuffah neighbourhoods. Some families have left for shelters along the coast, while others have moved to central and southern parts of the enclave, according to residents there.
“We are facing a bitter-bitter situation, to die at home or leave and die somewhere else. As long as this war continues, survival is uncertain,” said Rabah Abu Elias, 67, a father of seven.
“In the news, they speak about a possible truce. On the ground, we only hear explosions and see deaths. To leave Gaza City or not isn’t an easy decision to make,” he told the Reuters news agency.
Israel’s government approved a new offensive earlier this month, a plan by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for the military occupation of Gaza City, a move widely condemned globally.
Gaza Health Ministry rejects Israeli push to transfer resources south
The Palestinian Health Ministry has released a statement responding to what it says is an Israeli push to transfer health system resources to the south of the enclave.
“The Ministry of Health expresses its rejection of any step that would undermine what remains of the health system following the systematic destruction carried out by the Israeli occupation authorities,” it said.
“This step would deprive more than one million people of their right to treatment and put the lives of residents, patients and the wounded at imminent risk.”
As we’ve been reporting, Palestinians in Gaza City have expressed alarm and defiance as Israel tries to seize the city and forcibly displace them to other parts of Gaza, many of which are already overcrowded and lacking food, shelter and other supplies.
In its statement, the Gaza Health Ministry called on the UN and other international institutions “to protect what remains of the health system and provide all the necessary resources to save lives”.
Palestinians inspect huge crater in Gaza City left by an Israeli bomb
Israel struck Gaza City particularly hard overnight, residents reported
