Palestinians have been fleeing districts to the east of Gaza’s second city, Khan Younis, following evacuation orders from Israel.
Overnight and into the morning, witnesses reported multiple Israeli strikes in and around Khan Younis. According to a medical source and the Palestinian Red Crescent, eight people were killed and more than 30 were wounded.
Patients and medical staff have also been evacuating the European Gaza Hospital in the area, as directed by the Hamas-run health ministry in Gaza.
The Israeli military has not issued an evacuation order for the hospital itself.
The Red Cross has reportedly assisted patients in transferring to another hospital.
Louise Wateridge, an official with the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) in Gaza, questioned where people could go as they were being forced to leave their homes once again.
“In this area, people were already forced to survive in severely damaged, destroyed, structurally unsafe buildings after the Rafah military operation,” she said.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) issued a statement on its latest operation in Gaza, saying it was responding to some 20 projectiles that were launched from the area of Khan Yunis towards Israel on Monday.
“Overnight, the IDF struck terror targets in the area from which the projectiles were fired, including a weapons storage facility, operational centres and additional terrorist infrastructure sites,” it continued.
The IDF stated that Hamas continues to “systematically violate international law by using civilian infrastructure and the civilian population as human shields.”
The armed wing of Palestinian Islamic Jihad claimed responsibility for Monday’s attack, which was the largest barrage launched into Israel from Gaza in months.
Earlier this year, much of Khan Younis was destroyed in a sustained Israeli offensive against Hamas. The city, to which some residents had returned, is now almost unrecognizable. Many had moved back to escape Israel’s offensive in Rafah.
Now, once again, many are on the move, fearing another major assault.