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Israel launches assaults on Rafah, Shujaiya
Israeli forces advanced further on Sunday into the Shujaiya neighborhood of northern Gaza and also pushed deeper into western and central Rafah in the south, residents said.
Israeli tanks, which moved back into Shujaiya four days ago, fired shells towards several houses, leaving families trapped inside and unable to leave, the residents said.
Tens of thousands of Palestinians have fled the devastated neighborhood.
Speaking at the start of the weekly cabinet meeting on Sunday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu repeated his position that there was no substitute for achieving victory in the war against Hamas.
“We are committed to fighting until we achieve all of our objectives: Eliminating Hamas, returning all of our hostages, ensuring that Gaza never again constitutes a threat to Israel and returning our residents securely to their homes in the south and the north,” he added.
Months of on-and-off talks towards a Gaza truce and captive release deal have meanwhile made little progress, with Hamas saying Saturday there was “nothing new” in a revised plan presented by US mediators.
The Israeli military reported clashes in central Gaza and the southern Rafah area, a week after Netanyahu declared that the “intense phase” of the war raging since October 7 was nearing an end.
The United Nations humanitarian agency OCHA estimated that “60,000 to 80,000 people were displaced” from Shujaiya since new fighting broke out there on Thursday and the army issued evacuation orders.
For those who remain, “our lives have become hell”, said 50-year-old Shujaiya resident Siham al-Shawa.
She told AFP people were trapped as strikes could happen “anywhere” and “it is difficult to get out of the neighborhood under fire”.
“We do not know where to go to protect ourselves.”