Israel Warns Gaza City Residents As Military Prepares For Intensified Assault

Gaza City is once again at the centre of the conflict. Israel has told Palestinians living there to evacuate “immediately,” warning of a major ground operation to seize control of Hamas’s last stronghold in the enclave. For families already battered by months of war, the warning feels less like a choice and more like an impossible order.

The Warning That Shook The City

Leaflets fluttered down from planes over Gaza City, urging residents to head south along the Al-Rashid road. On social media, the Israeli army’s Arabic-language spokesman repeated the message: leave now or face “great force.” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu echoed the warning in a video message, calling it a prelude to a “main intensified operation.”

For 36-year-old Khaled Khuwaiter, who fled the Zeitun neighbourhood, the message felt hollow. “Where are we supposed to go?” he asked. “Bombing and killings are everywhere. We have only God, because the world watches our slaughter and does nothing.”

Daily Life In Ruins

What used to be vibrant neighbourhoods are now unrecognisable. AFP footage showed smoke curling over streets lined with rubble, while families loaded their lives onto tractor trailers and donkey carts. Some pushed wooden carts by hand, carrying whatever possessions they could save.

Residents like 40-year-old Laila Saqr describe a city that feels erased. A tower block she once visited for gym sessions is now a heap of concrete. “Israel destroys everything even the memories,” she said. “If they could, they would strip the very oxygen from the air.”

The Human Toll

Gaza’s civil defence agency reported at least 15 deaths from Israeli air strikes early Tuesday, after 39 people were killed the day before. Among the dead were 25 people in Gaza City alone. While casualty figures are impossible to independently verify due to restrictions on media access, the devastation is plain to see.

Israel insists its strikes target Hamas, accusing the group of using civilian infrastructure for military purposes. The Al-Roya tower, destroyed on Monday, was described by the Israeli military as a hub for intelligence operations. Hamas, however, calls these demolitions an attempt at forced displacement.

Talks, Warnings, And Stalemates

The latest military escalation comes as fragile ceasefire talks show little progress. US President Donald Trump has claimed Israel accepted his terms for a truce, warning Hamas that this was his “last warning.” Hamas responded by saying it was ready to sit down “immediately” at the negotiating table, but insists Israel’s demands including a complete disarmament are unacceptable.

Behind the politics are staggering figures. Of the 251 hostages Hamas took during its October 2023 attack, 47 remain in Gaza, including 25 believed dead. That attack killed 1,219 people in Israel, mostly civilians. Israel’s retaliatory campaign has since claimed the lives of more than 64,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza health officials, numbers the UN considers credible.

Global Reaction And Public Outcry

On social media, #GazaUnderAttack trended once again, with users sharing haunting images of families walking through clouds of dust and smoke. Human rights organisations have renewed calls for an immediate ceasefire, while ordinary people across the Middle East and beyond express outrage that, despite countless appeals, the war shows no sign of ending.

For Palestinians, the fear now is not only the loss of lives but the erasure of their city. As one Gazan put it online: “Every time they tell us to leave, they take more of our home away. What will be left when the bombs stop?”

Source: EWN

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