By Mohamed Majed
GAZA CITY, Palestine (AA) - The Israeli army warned Palestinians to evacuate two residential areas Saturday in the southern Gaza Strip, including locations previously designated as "safe," in preparation for a military attack.
"To all residents of the Gaza Strip located in blocks 2270, 2260, 131, 2352, 2353, and 2354 (in al-Qarara and Wadi al-Salqa), for your safety, move immediately westward to the humanitarian zone," said army spokesperson Avichay Adraee.
"Rocket-propelled grenades are once again being launched from this area, which has been warned several times in the past," he added on X.
The areas identified by the army on a map attached to the statement include locations previously classified as "safe," where thousands of Palestinians now reside, including displaced individuals who were forced from their original areas and set up tents.
Warnings are usually followed by airstrikes or ground incursions by the army.
The Israeli army has warned Palestinians on several occasions to evacuate areas in Gaza to locations it claims are "humanitarian," only to later commit “massacres” by bombing tents sheltering displaced people.
Israel has launched a genocidal war on Gaza that has killed more than 44,800 victims, mostly women and children, since an attack by the Palestinian resistance group, Hamas, on Oct. 7, 2023.
The second year of genocide in Gaza has drawn growing international condemnation, with officials and institutions labeling the attacks and the blocking of aid deliveries as a deliberate attempt to destroy a population.
The International Criminal Court (ICC) issued arrest warrants last month for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former defense chief Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.
Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war on Gaza.
*Writing by Rania Abu Shamala