Thousands of residents of the central Gaza city of Deir al-Balah are fleeing the area following a new Israeli evacuation order.
Reports from Gaza suggest the measure targeted Al-Aqsa Hospital, one of the few remaining functioning health facilities in the area.
Israel’s evacuation notice on Sunday said the army would take “strong measures against Hamas and terrorist organizations” in the area, which it called a “dangerous combat zone.”
According to the army, Israeli forces “eliminated dozens of terrorists and found large quantities of weapons” in the southern Gaza town of Khan Younis.
In response, the UN’s Palestinian agency – the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) – reported that only three of the 18 wells in Deir al-Balah are functioning, causing severe water shortages.
“People in (Gaza) not only live in constant fear for their lives, they also struggle to meet their most basic needs,” the agency said on social media platform X, reiterating its call for an immediate ceasefire.
The conflict in Gaza was triggered by the unprecedented attacks by the Palestinian militant group Hamas on Israel on October 7. More than 1,200 people were killed and more than 250 hostages were taken to Gaza.
At least 40,435 people have been killed and more than 93,500 wounded in the subsequent Israeli offensive in Gaza, according to the Hamas-controlled health authority.
