The Israeli military has issued a new evacuation order to pave the way for a military operation (Getty)
The Israeli army issued new evacuation orders for the central Gaza Strip on Saturday to pave the way for an “immediate” military operation, Israeli army spokesman Avichay Adraee said in a statement.
The evacuation order affected many areas, including Al-Maghazi, Salah Al-Din Street, Al-Farouq and Al-Amal.
The forced relocation of Palestinians through evacuation orders has been used repeatedly since the beginning of Israel’s war against the enclave on October 7.
Adraee claimed the order was given “against the backdrop of continued rocket fire by Hamas and terrorist organizations from these areas.”
He added that residents should move to a designated humanitarian zone in Al-Mawasi, west of the Gaza Strip, although Israeli forces have previously targeted people in safe zones.
On Friday, Israeli forces further reduced the size of the humanitarian zone and called on Palestinians seeking protection there to leave because they would be conducting military operations.
UNRWA, the UN agency for Palestine refugees, said Israel had imposed evacuation orders on about 84 percent of the Gaza Strip since October.
There has been a significant increase in forced evacuation orders in recent weeks, particularly in Khan Younis and Deir Al-Balah.
According to the Deir Al-Balah municipality, the orders led to the closure of ten key water wells amid a worsening humanitarian crisis.
“Access to three other wells west of Salah al-Din Street has become dangerous,” Ismail Sarsour, head of the municipality’s emergency committee, said in a statement, adding that the situation in the area was likely to worsen in the coming days.
The new evacuation orders come despite reports from Israel Channel 11 It quotes Israeli security sources as saying that the fighting in the Gaza Strip is “exhausted.”
“Israel may return and re-enter the Gaza Strip if new intelligence is available, but by and large, the Israeli army’s operations in Gaza are over,” the sources reportedly said.
The orders also come just days after ceasefire talks resumed in Doha. Hamas officials said Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was delaying a ceasefire agreement by failing to meet agreed conditions and adding new ones.
Israel’s war against Gaza displaced nearly two million people out of a total population of 2.3 million and killed more than 40,000.
