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Palestinians flee their homes towards southern Gaza after Israeli order

At least 1,799 people killed and 6,388 others wounded by Israeli air raids in Gaza since Saturday, Palestinian auhorities say.

Palestinians flee their houses heading toward the southern part of Gaza Strip
As the news of the order spread, confusion and fear started spreading among panicked residents of the besieged enclave. [Mohammed Salem/Reuters]
Published On 13 Oct 2023

Thousands of Palestinians have begun to flee their homes in the Gaza Strip after the Israeli military called for all civilians in the northern half of the besieged enclave to relocate south, as it amassed tanks for an expected ground assault.

The United Nations warned on Friday that the order demanding the relocation of 1.1 million people within 24 hours was “impossible” and could have devastating consequences.

The order, which comes on the seventh day of a war and “total blockade” declared by Israel following an unprecedented Hamas incursion and deadly attack, directs residents of Gaza City to flee deeper south into the Gaza Strip, a narrow coastal territory that is home to about 2.3 million people.

Palestinians in southern and central areas of the enclave, where people were expected to flee to, said air strikes had hit there overnight, with central parts also hit on Friday morning. “No place is safe in the entire Gaza Strip,” the Palestinian Red Crescent Society said.

According to Palestinian authorities, at least 1,799 people have been killed and more than 6,000 others wounded in Gaza since Israel launched a relentless bombardment of the territory on Saturday.

The UN humanitarian office (OCHA) said more than 400,000 people had already been made homeless in Gaza and 23 aid workers had been killed. “Mass displacement continues,” it said.

Palestinians flee their houses heading toward the southern part of Gaza Strip
'This evacuation is for your own safety,' the Israeli military said, in a warning it said was sent to Gaza City civilians. [Ahmed Zakot/Reuters]
Palestinians flee their houses heading toward the southern part of Gaza Strip
'You will be able to return to Gaza City only when another announcement permitting it is made. Do not approach the area of the security fence with the State of Israel,' the Israeli military said in the statement. [Ahmed Zakot/Reuters]
Palestinians flee their houses heading toward the southern part of Gaza Strip
At least 1,799 people have been killed in relentless Israeli bombardment on Gaza since Hamas attacked Israel October 7. [Ahmed Zakot/Reuters]
Palestinians flee their houses heading toward the southern part of Gaza Strip
Hamas, the group running the Gaza Strip, said the Israeli army’s evacuation warning was 'fake propaganda'. [Ahmed Zakot/Reuters]
Palestinians flee their houses heading toward the southern part of Gaza Strip
The Hamas Authority for Refugee Affairs also told residents in the north to 'remain steadfast in your homes and to stand firm in the face of this disgusting psychological war waged by the occupation'. [Ahmed Zakot/Reuters]
Palestinians flee their houses heading toward the southern part of Gaza Strip
The broad order for all of Gaza’s north also applies to all UN staff and to the hundreds of thousands of people who have taken shelter in UN schools and other facilities since Israel launched round-the-clock air strikes on Saturday. [Ahmed Zakot/Reuters]
Palestinians flee their houses heading toward the southern part of Gaza Strip
'The United Nations considers it impossible for such a movement to take place without devastating humanitarian consequences,' spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said. [Ahmed Zakot/Reuters]
Palestinians flee their houses heading toward the southern part of Gaza Strip
The global body also said its agency for Palestinian refugees is moving operations and foreign staff to southern Gaza, following the Israel army’s evacuation order. [Ahmed Zakot/Reuters]
Palestinians flee their houses heading toward the southern part of Gaza Strip
The World Health Organization (WHO) said on Friday local health authorities in Gaza had informed it that it was impossible to evacuate vulnerable hospital patients from northern Gaza. [Ahmed Zakot/Reuters]