Israel orders new evacuations in the southern Gaza city of Rafah as it prepares to expand operations
The evacuation order comes as tensions continue to grow between Israel and the US, ITV News' Olivia Guthrie reports
Israel has ordered new evacuations in Gaza's southern city of Rafah as it prepared to expand its operation, saying it was also moving into an area in northern Gaza where Hamas has regrouped.
Fighting is escalating across the region with heavy clashes between Israeli troops and Palestinians on the outskirts of the crowded area, leaving the crucial nearby aid crossings inaccessible and forcing more than 110,000 people to flee north.
Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) spokesman, Avichay Adraee, told Palestinians in Jabaliya and Beit Lahiya cities and the surrounding areas to leave their homes and head to shelters in the west of Gaza City, warning that people were in “a dangerous combat zone” and that Israel was going to strike with “great force.”
Israel’s move into Rafah has so far been short of the full-scale invasion that it has planned.
The United Nations and other agencies have warned for weeks that an Israeli assault on Rafah, which borders Egypt near the main aid entry points, would cripple humanitarian operations and cause a disastrous surge in civilian casualties.
The United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) said that some 300,000 people have been affected by evacuation orders in Rafah and Jabaliya, but the numbers are likely higher in the densely populated areas.
“We’re extremely concerned that these evacuation orders have come both towards central Rafah and Jabaliya,” Louise Wateridge, UNRWA spokesperson in Rafah, said.
More than 1.4 million Palestinians - half of Gaza’s population - have been sheltering in Rafah, most after fleeing Israel’s offensives elsewhere.
The announcement comes as a US government report suggests Israel may have breached international humanitarian law.
The state department report, delivered to Congress on Friday, stopped short of officially saying Israel violated the law, arguing there was not enough evidence to immediately link specific US weapons to individual strikes by Israeli forces in Gaza.
Any evidence that could link arms to specific strikes could give the administration leeway in any future decision on whether to restrict US provisions of offensive weapons to Israel.
In response to the US report, Ophir Falk, foreign policy adviser to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Saturday that Israel acts in compliance with the laws of armed conflict and the army takes extensive measures to avert civilian casualties.
Those measures include alerting people to forthcoming military operations via phone calls and text messages and providing maps to safe areas, he said.
Want a quick and expert briefing on the biggest news stories? Listen to our latest podcasts to find out What You Need To Know…