As Israeli forces have moved further into southern Gaza, airstrikes and close-combat fighting are approaching areas crowded with more than a million people seeking refuge from the destruction across the rest of the territory.
The prospect of major operations taking place in territory with such a dense and vulnerable population is “deeply concerning”, say aid officials, who fear Gaza’s largest remaining hospital may have to be closed or evacuated.
Witnesses reported the sound of ground combat and explosions throughout Friday in western Khan Younis, the main city in the south of Gaza, where Israel says many members and leaders of the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas are hiding.
This is the best summary I could come up with:
As Israeli forces have moved further into southern Gaza, airstrikes and close-combat fighting are approaching areas crowded with more than a million people seeking refuge from the destruction across the rest of the territory.
The prospect of major operations taking place in territory with such a dense and vulnerable population is “deeply concerning”, say aid officials, who fear Gaza’s largest remaining hospital may have to be closed or evacuated.
Witnesses reported the sound of ground combat and explosions throughout Friday in western Khan Younis, the main city in the south of Gaza, where Israel says many members and leaders of the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas are hiding.
Analysts in Israel say securing control of Khan Younis and Rafah is essential to achieving its war aims of destroying the military capabilities of Hamas and freeing more than 132 hostages abducted by the group in the 7 October attacks.
There is no real shelter anywhere else,” said Philippe Lazzarini, head of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees, shortly after returning from a three-day visit to Gaza earlier this week.
Dr Marwan Abu Saada, the director of surgery at Shifa hospital, said he was hoping to open an ICU next week and that some basic services had been restored, but that fuel, power and medicine were still in short supply.
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