An Israeli army spokesman has declared the evacuation of Gaza City “inevitable” as the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) prepare to take control of the largest city in the Palestinian territory. In a post on X, the army’s Arabic-language spokesman, Avichay Adraee, stated that “every family that moves south will receive the most generous humanitarian aid, currently being developed.” He added that the IDF has begun working to bring tents and prepare areas for the establishment of aid distribution complexes in the southern Gaza Strip.
According to the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), nearly 1,000 Palestinians have been killed in the West Bank by Israeli forces and settlers since October 2023.
An evacuation order has also been issued for the Orthodox Church of Saint Porphyrius in Gaza, as reported by The Times of Israel. This follows a joint declaration from Greek Orthodox Patriarch Theophilos III and Catholic Patriarch Pierbattista Pizzaballa, who announced that local clergy would not leave the two Christian churches in Gaza, Saint Porphyrius and the Holy Family, which are sheltering fewer than 500 people.
Medical sources cited by Al Jazeera report that at least 21 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli military attacks in the Gaza Strip since dawn today. The toll includes four civilians killed while waiting for humanitarian aid.
In a separate incident, at least 80 Palestinians were wounded during an ongoing Israeli military operation in the occupied city of Nablus in the West Bank, according to Al Jazeera. One Palestinian was reportedly injured by live fire. The IDF confirmed to AFP that an operation was underway but did not specify its purpose. Local residents said the raid began at 3:00 AM local time.
In related news, the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry claims 10 Palestinians, including two children, have died from “famine and malnutrition” in the Strip over the past 24 hours, bringing the total number of starvation-related deaths since the start of the war to 313, including 119 minors.
Meanwhile, the IDF announced that an Israeli Air Force strike, guided by military intelligence and the Shin Bet, killed Mahmoud al-Asoud, the commander of Hamas’s General Security Apparatus in western Gaza. The army described al-Asoud as having played a central role in Hamas’s security apparatus both during the current war and in previous years.
In a political comment, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu suggested in an interview that the October 7th massacre might not have occurred if Donald Trump were president, stating that Iran would have been “more cautious.” He also described how U.S. President Joe Biden had reportedly threatened to impose an arms embargo on Israel and warned against an operation in Rafah.