Israeli army orders immediate evacuation of eastern Khan Younis residents despite designation as safe zone

By İbrahim Sipahi

GAZA CITY, Palestine (AA) - The Israeli army ordered Monday morning Palestinians living in the eastern neighborhoods of Khan Younis, southern Gaza Strip, to evacuate immediately, despite earlier claims that the area was a humanitarian and safe zone.

Israeli army spokesperson Avichay Adraee claimed in a statement that “the presence of multiple military operations and rocket fire from the eastern part of the humanitarian zone has made staying there dangerous.”

“Therefore, the army calls on residents who remain in the eastern neighborhoods of Khan Younis to evacuate immediately to the newly designated humanitarian area in Al-Mawasi,” he added.

Two weeks ago, the Israeli army committed a massacre in Al-Mawasi, which it claimed was safe, resulting in the deaths of 90 Palestinians and the injuries of 300 in a series of airstrikes targeting tents and displacement shelters.

Flouting a UN Security Council resolution demanding an immediate cease-fire, Israel has faced international condemnation amid its continued brutal offensive on Gaza since an Oct. 7 attack by Hamas.

Nearly 39,000 Palestinians have since been killed, mostly women and children, and over 89,700 injured, according to local health authorities.

Over nine months into the Israeli onslaught, vast tracts of Gaza lie in ruins amid a crippling blockade of food, clean water, and medicine.

Israel is accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice, whose latest ruling ordered it to immediately halt its military operation in Rafah, where more than 1 million Palestinians had sought refuge from the war before it was invaded on May 6.

* Writing by Mohammad Sio.