The Israeli defense force, the IDF, ordered the evacuation of the entire Gaza City on Wednesday. An urban area where, according to CNN, close to 2 million people lived in autumn 2023. The population density in the city itself is over 500 per 100 square meters according to the European Commission. The BBC estimates that 250,000 people are still in the city. On Wednesday, the IDF spread leaflets from aircraft with a message in Arabic that all residents of Gaza City must evacuate south to the Deir al-Balah area. According to Haaretz, it stated that residents could safely leave the city via separate corridors in the south of the city. Claims the streets are filled with corpses The order came after Israel attacked several areas in Gaza City this week. They have also asked for the evacuation of several districts. According to CNN, tens of thousands have already fled. The photo shows a Palestinian woman standing in the ruins and looking at the damage after Israeli forces withdrew from the Shejaiya area on Wednesday following a ground attack. Photo: Dawoud Abu Alkas / Reuters/ NTB A spokesman for the Hamas-controlled civil defense in Gaza, Mahmoud Bassal, says according to Al Jazeera that the streets are full of corpses and that at least 30 Palestinians have been killed in the attack on the Tal al-Hawa area in city. This is the second time since October that Israel has asked all residents of Gaza City to evacuate. – I do not want to leave Gaza City. I’m not making the mistake others have made. Israeli missiles do not differentiate between north and south, says resident Ibrahim al-Barbari (47) to the BBC. – If death is my fate and the fate of my children, we shall die with honor in our own homes, he continues. UN concerned The Ministry of the Interior in Gaza calls the evacuation order “psychological warfare” against civilians who have nowhere to flee. The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, OCHA, says the evacuation “will only increase the suffering of Palestinian families”. – These civilians must be protected, and they must have their basic needs met, regardless of whether they flee or stay, writes OCHA on Wednesday. Palestinian boys in the Shujaiya neighborhood east of Gaza City on Wednesday. Photo: Omar AL-QATTAA / AFP / NTB The UN Center for Human Rights warns at the same time that the Deir al-Balah area south of Gaza City is already critically overpopulated by Palestinians fleeing from other parts of Gaza. Cease-fire talks At the same time, talks about a cease-fire continue in Doha in Qatar. – Our message to the parties is to find the political courage to enter into such an agreement. For the sake of the people in Gaza, for the sake of the Israeli people and for the sake of the hostages, says UN spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric. Hamas says, according to the BBC, that Israel’s new attack on Gaza City could derail negotiations on a ceasefire and hostage exchange. If you want more foreign material, you can listen to the editor’s podcast here: Published 11.07.2024, at 08.26
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