Gaza Strip: New Israeli Offensive Killed 40 People, Many Injured
Destruction Caused by the Defense Forces of Israel in Khan Younis, July 22, 2024 Photo: @mediafax
July 22, 2024 Hour: 1:18 pm
Regional television stations showed images of tens of thousands of Palestinians as they fled with what little they could carry on their shoulders or at best on bicycles or donkey carts.
On Monday, at least 40 Palestinians were killed and dozens injured in a new ground offensive launched by the Israeli army against the southern Gaza Strip town of Khan Younis.
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Three months after withdrawing from the city, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) on Monday ordered the evacuation of the eastern part of the city and minutes later launched a major bombing campaign, a step prior to the entry of its soldiers.
The Nasser Medical Complex reported receiving hundreds of people within hours of the start of the campaign.
“We are losing the lives of the sick and wounded because of a lack of capacity. We don’t have the minimum resources and supplies to treat the wounded,” warned a medical source quoted by the official Wafa news agency.
Regional television stations showed images of tens of thousands of Palestinians as they fled with what little they could carry on their shoulders or at best on bicycles or donkey carts.
According to Wafa, the IDF also decided to reduce the size of the so-called Al Mawasi safe zone near Al Mawasi, where hundreds of thousands of Palestinians are sheltering.
Although declared safe, the area was the target of several Israeli attacks, including one 10 days ago that killed 90 people and wounded 300 under the pretext of eliminating Mohammed Deif, head of Hamas’s military wing.
The news outlet noted that “immediately after the army’s decision, an intense air and ground bombardment operation was launched against Khan Younis, without giving the citizens a chance to flee”.
Al Jazeera television said the new attack came only 15 minutes after the evacuation order, announced by IDF Arabic-language spokesman Avichay Adraee.
The official issued the alert on the grounds of a new military offensive against Palestinian militias that have allegedly returned to the area after the military withdrawal.
According to the UN, more than 90 per cent of the 2.3 million Gazans have become refugees since the beginning of the current cycle of violence on 7 October.
Much of Khan Younis was destroyed following a ground offensive launched late last year.
Numerous casualties have also been reported in recent hours as a result of Israeli incursions into several areas of the coastal enclave.
Autor: OSG
Fuente: Aljazeera-WAFA
