ISTANBUL
The Israeli army issued an evacuation order for the residents of Khan Younis and Gaza City on Wednesday ahead of a new military offensive in the area.
Military spokesman Avichay Adraee ordered civilians, including those living in tents in the Al-Nasr neighborhood of Khan Younis in southern Gaza, to evacuate the area, as the army will “expand the scope of combat.”
The army issued a similar order for the residents of Gaza City’s Zeitoun neighborhood to leave the area and head south toward al-Mawasi as “the Israeli army continues to intensify operations westward.”
The Al-Mawasi area in Khan Younis, designated by the Israeli army as a “safe zone,” has become severely overcrowded, with tens of thousands of displaced Palestinians living in dire humanitarian conditions.
Despite being labeled a “safe zone,” al-Mawasi has been bombed multiple times over the course of the war, with Israeli airstrikes killing hundreds of civilians sheltering there.
Israel has been facing mounting outrage over its destructive war on Gaza, where more than 61,000 people have been killed since October 2023. The military campaign has devastated the enclave and brought it to the verge of famine.
Last November, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.
Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war on the enclave.