Israel again carried out air strikes on Gaza on Tuesday, March 25. Local health officials said that at least 23 Palestinians were killed in Israeli air strikes, while the army has also ordered thousands of residents to leave the area. Palestinian health officials said that about 700 people, mostly women and children, have been killed in these new attacks which resumed a week ago after a two-month ceasefire broke down.
The new conflict has worsened the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, where 2.3 million people have been repeatedly displaced during nearly 18 months of fighting and are now facing severe food and water shortages after Israel halted aid earlier this month.
On Tuesday, the Israeli military ordered residents of all northern border towns to evacuate, citing Palestinian rocket attacks targeting Israel.
The orders cover the Gaza City areas of Jabalia, Beit Lahiya, Beit Hanoun and Shejaiya, as well as Khan Younis and Rafah in the south.
"For your own safety, you should immediately move south and take shelters," the army said in instructions to Jabaliya residents. The refugee camp is the largest in Gaza and has been badly affected by the ongoing fighting.
However, Palestinian and UN officials believe that no area in the Gaza Strip is completely safe.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the deadly military operation was aimed at pressuring Hamas to release the remaining 59 hostages still held in Gaza, about 24 of whom were likely to be alive.
Hamas has accused Israel of backtracking on a ceasefire agreement reached on January 19. It said it was involved in new mediation efforts led by Qatar, Egypt and the US to restore calm and finalise a three-phase ceasefire agreement. However, some Hamas sources indicated that no breakthrough had been made.
All of this stems from a sudden, deadly attack by Hamas on Israel on October 7, 2023. According to Israeli figures, 1,200 people were killed in the attack and about 250 were taken hostage. In response, Israel launched a military attack on Gaza, which has since killed more than 50,000 Palestinians, according to the local health ministry.
