JERUSALEM/ISTANBUL

The Israeli army on Monday launched a new ground offensive in Deir al-Balah, a city in the central Gaza Strip, local media said.

Channel 14, a private Hebrew-language broadcaster, said forces from the Israeli army’s Golani Brigade entered the city early Monday, but did not provide further details.

A day earlier, army spokesperson Avichay Adraee issued an evacuation order for civilians in the southwestern part of Deir al-Balah — including blocks 130, 132–134, 136, 139, and 2351, as well as those sheltering in tents, and head south to the Al-Mawasi area in Khan Younis.

The warning triggered a mass displacement of residents from the designated neighborhoods early Monday, with many questioning where to go as Israel continues to bomb even areas it previously labeled as “safe zones.”

Monday’s ground operation is the first in Deir al-Balah since the start of Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza in October 2023.

Since Oct. 7, 2023, the Israeli army has killed more than 59,000 Palestinians, most of them women and children, in Gaza. The relentless bombing has destroyed the enclave, nearly collapsed its health system, and created famine-like conditions.

Last November, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and 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 over its war on the enclave.