Israeli airstrikes on the Al-Bureij refugee camp in central Gaza and on the northern town of Jabalia killed at least 17 Palestinians on Wednesday, the official Palestinian news agency WAFA said.
The Israeli military had no immediate comment although, in a post on X, its Arabic spokesman had earlier warned residents of Al-Bureij to leave ahead of an imminent strike the -against terrorists who were firing rockets from the area.
They also said overnight that he killed Abd al-Hadi Sabah, a Hamas activist who helped lead the infiltration into Kibbutz Nir Oz during the October 7, 2023, attack by the Islamist group. in southern Israel.
The directive to clear the Al-Bureij camp has caused a new wave of movement, although it was not immediately clear how many people were affected.
WAFA said the military blew up residential blocks in Beit Lahiya and around Jabalia, while tanks sheltered parts of Gaza City and Al-Bureij camp.
Israel says its nearly three-month-old operation in northern Gaza is aimed at preventing Hamas militants from regrouping. His order for civilians to be evacuated is to keep them out of harm's way, the military says.
Palestinian and United Nations officials say that nowhere in Gaza is safe and that evacuations are worsening the humanitarian situation of the people.
According to the Palestinian Civil Defense, more than 1,500 tents sheltering displaced people across Gaza were flooded by heavy rain over the past two days, leaving people exposed to the cold and their belongings on the damage.
Hundreds more tents suffered less severe flooding that left displaced people unable to use them.
Much of the area around the northern towns of Beit Hanoun, Jabalia and Beit Lahiya has been cleared and destroyed, fueling speculation that Israel intends to keep the area as a closed buffer zone after the fighting in Gaza ends. .
No end in sight
Israel's Gaza campaign has killed more than 45,500 Palestinians, according to Palestinian health officials. Most of Gaza's 2.3 million people have been displaced and much of the small coastal strip is in ruins.
On October 7, 2023, a Hamas attack on Israel killed 1,200 people, with another 251 taken hostage, according to Israeli figures.
The Israeli military says it only targets terrorists and blames Hamas for civilian deaths because its fighters operate in densely populated areas. The army says they have killed 17,000 soldiers, without providing evidence.
Israel's attack closed Gaza's main hospital on Friday, the World Health Organization (WHO) said. Kamal Adwan Hospital was the last operational hospital in northern Gaza, and WHO spokeswoman Margaret Harris says this 'essential' lifeline for local Palestinians is gone.
The war has caused widespread destruction and displaced about 90 percent of Gaza's population of 2.3 million, many multiple times.
Hundreds of thousands live in tents along the coast as winter brings frequent rainstorms and temperatures drop below 10°C at night. At least six babies and another person have died of hypothermia, according to the Ministry of Health.
American and Arab mediators have spent nearly a year trying to broker a ceasefire and loosen hostilities, but those efforts have stalled again.
Hamas has called for a truce, while Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has promised to continue fighting until there is a “total victory” over the militants.
