Israeli bombing leaves 100,000 displaced Palestinians in Gaza’s Deir al-Balah city with nowhere to go

By Mohammed Al Ragawi

GAZA CITY, Palestine (AA) – Approximately 100,000 displaced Palestinians in the eastern part of Deir al-Balah city in Gaza have no place to seek refuge from Israeli forces' extensive bombardment, as Israel destroyed 20 shelter centers over the last two days after issuing evacuation orders, the city municipality said on Saturday.

In a brief statement, the municipality revealed that "100,000 Palestinians have been displaced from the eastern part of the city in the past two days, and 20 shelter centers have been rendered inoperable due to the bombings and Israeli evacuation orders."

Since the onset of Israel's war on Gaza on October 7, 2023, Palestinians in Gaza have been forced to move repeatedly under evacuation orders issued by Israel.

According to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), Israel issued 16 evacuation orders between July 1 and August 21, and forcibly displaced around 213,000 Palestinians from the beginning of August to the 16th of the month.

UN data indicates that nine out of 10 people in Gaza have been displaced due to Israeli attacks. The organization’s statistics show that most Palestinians in Gaza are forced to relocate at least once a month.

Displaced individuals fleeing Israeli attacks are living in dire conditions at their temporary shelters, struggling to survive in makeshift tents.

Israel has continued its brutal offensive on the Gaza Strip following an attack by the Palestinian group Hamas last Oct. 7, despite a UN Security Council resolution calling for an immediate cease-fire.

The onslaught has resulted in over 40,300 Palestinian deaths, mostly women and children, and over 93,000 injuries, according to local health authorities.

An ongoing blockade of Gaza has led to severe shortages of food, clean water and medicine, leaving much of the region in ruins.

Israel faces accusations of genocide at the International Court of Justice, which has ordered a halt to military operations in the southern city of Rafah, where over one million Palestinians had sought refuge before the area was invaded on May 6.

* Writing by Ikram Kouachi