Israel displaces hundreds more Palestinians from Rafah 

Even more Palestinians were displaced by Israeli bombing from the Al-Mawasi area in the city of Rafah yesterday, Anadolu has reported. According to eyewitnesses, “hundreds” of Palestinians fled to Deir Al-Balah and Khan Yunis.

“The Israeli army classified Al-Mawasi as a safe zone but last night targeted the area with shells and gunfire,” explained Khaled Sheikh Eid, 41. “The army killed eight members of the Abu Amra family and wounded members of my own family, so we decided to move elsewhere, fearing for our lives.”

According to Ghassan Daher, 35, the Israelis used “quadcopter drones which opened fire on us. The Israeli army targeted our tent, which led to me being wounded by shrapnel.” He also pointed out that the area was meant to be a safe zone. “And yet it was targeted.”

The government media office in Gaza has said that there are about two million displaced people in the Gaza Strip out of the total population of 2.4 million.

Al-Mawasi is on the coastal strip of the Mediterranean Sea. At 12 kilometres long and one kilometre wide, it stretches from Deir Al-Balah in the north and passes through Khan Yunis governorate in the south of Gaza. The area is open land and not residential. It lacks infrastructure, including sewage networks and power lines. It is largely agricultural land, or sand.

Displaced people are living in tragic conditions with a severe shortage of basic resources, such as water, sanitation, medical care and food. Living in tents made of nylon and worn-out fabric, they have to cope with temperature in excess of 30 degrees Celsius.

READ: 67% of water, sanitation infrastructure destroyed in Gaza since 7 October: UN Refugee agency