Israeli army orders new evacuation in northwest Gaza

GAZA STRIP: The Israeli military said Monday it ordered the evacuation of several neighbourhoods and towns near Gaza City, warning of imminent fighting after rockets were launched from the area.

Avichay Adraee, a military spokesman, posted on social media platform X a map showing several areas in the Gaza Strip’s northwest to be evacuated, declaring them part of a “dangerous combat zone”.

Israel has issued numerous evacuation orders during its war against Gaza rulers Hamas, triggered by the Palestinian group’s October 7 attack.

The evacuation orders have covered most of Gaza’s territory, according to the UN, and include areas where the military had previously said were largely cleared of Palestinian armed groups.

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Adraee said Palestinian fighters were “once again firing rockets at the State of Israel” from Gaza’s northwest, a focus of Israel’s military operations in the early stages of the war.

Earlier Monday the armed wing of Islamic Jihad, a Palestinian group fighting alongside Hamas in Gaza, claimed responsibility for rockets launched at southern Israel.

The military said “two projectiles were identified crossing from northern Gaza into Israeli territory” late Sunday, with one intercepted and the other falling in the sea.

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The vast majority of Gaza’s 2.4 million people have been displaced at least once during more than 11 months of war, according to the United Nations.

Previous evacuation orders have sent people fleeing entire neighbourhoods or towns with whatever belongings they can carry with them.

Israel’s military offensives in Gaza has killed at least 40,972 people, according to the Hamas-run territory’s health ministry, which does not provide details of civilian and fighters deaths.

The UN rights office says most of the dead are women and children.

The October 7 attack on southern Israel resulted in the deaths of 1,205 people, mostly civilians and including some hostages killed in captivity, according to an AFP tally based on official Israeli figures.