Israel has issued directives for tens of thousands more Palestinians to evacuate Rafah, escalating military operations in southern Gaza.
Through flyers distributed from the air and posts on social media, residents in the city’s eastern neighborhoods were instructed to relocate to al-Mawasi – an area along the coast designated by Israel as an “expanded humanitarian zone.”
Areas of Rafah, once bustling with locals and displaced individuals just days earlier, now resemble deserted streets.
Despite warnings from the US and other allies about the potential for a ground offensive to result in extensive civilian casualties and humanitarian crises, Israel has affirmed its intention to proceed with planned operations in Rafah.
On Saturday, images captured smoke billowing over the city, with witnesses quoted by AFP reporting airstrikes in the vicinity of the Egypt border crossing.
Posting on X, formerly Twitter, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said that during the past day troops had been engaged in “face-to-face battles” with Hamas fighters in Rafah.
The IDF added that soldiers had found “a number of underground shafts” in the area.
In the past day, there have been dozens of Israeli air strikes across the length of the Gaza Strip, with the Israeli military saying it’s targeting what it calls terrorists and terrorist infrastructure.
It’s also instructed residents to leave some areas of northern Gaza; indicating its forces may return there months after they previously left.
The IDF said people in and around Jabaliya, in northern Gaza, need to “temporarily evacuate to shelters in western Gaza City” in order to “reduce harm” to residents “following attempts by Hamas to reassemble” in the area.
Originally displaced from Jabaliya, one man told the BBC he had received a message on his mobile, telling him to immediately evacuate Rafah.
“We don’t know where to go. We are about 80 people,” he told BBC Arabic’s programme Gaza Lifeline.
“I don’t have money to go back to Khan Younis. Some neighbours said to come and rent a place for very little rent. But I don’t have money even to rent a car.”