Gaza City residents reported Israeli tanks in two areas leading to the city centre as internet and phone lines were cut off across the coastal enclave on Thursday.
“The disconnection of internet and phone services is a bad omen. It has always been a bad signal something very brutal is going to happen,” said Ismail, who only gave one name. He was using an eSIM to connect his phone, a dangerous method as it requires seeking higher ground to receive a signal.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) pushed deeper into Gaza’s largest urban sprawl where thousands of Hamas militants are believed to be located.
About half of Gaza City is already under IDF control, along the eastern approaches. In recent days the Tel Al-Hawa neighbourhood in the south and Sheikh Radwan in the north have come under intense fire as Israel troops continue their advance.
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Residents reported that Israeli forces had used remotely driven vehicles laden with explosives in both areas.
In Rafah, at the southern tip of Gaza, four Israeli soldiers were killed in an explosion.
The Hamas-controlled health ministry reported on Thursday that 79 Palestinians were killed and 228 wounded by IDF fire in the previous 24 hours.
More than 65,000 people have now been killed in Gaza according to the Hamas-run health ministry. The war started on October 7th, 2023, when Hamas-led militants invaded southern Israel, killing 1,200 people and kidnapping 250, according to Israeli tallies.
The United Nations expressed concern over food and other supplies running out in northern Gaza. “There are now no direct aid entry points into northern Gaza and resupply from south to north is increasingly challenging due to mounting road congestion and insecurity,” the UN humanitarian office (OCHA) said in a statement.
The World Health Organisation has warned that overwhelmed hospitals are on the brink of collapse. It has accused Israel of preventing the delivery of life-saving supplies.
The Israeli military has been dropping leaflets urging Gaza City residents to flee towards a designated “humanitarian zone” in the south of the territory. However, aid agencies say conditions there are dire, with insufficient food, medicine and space, as well as inadequate shelter.
According to Israel, more than 450,000 residents of Gaza City have fled south to avoid the fighting. The city had a population of almost one million before the latest Israeli assault.
However, leaving Gaza City has become very expensive, with lorry drivers now charging families more than €1,500 for the short journey to central Gaza. This is a cost beyond the means of most Gaza families, forcing them to walk or stay put. A tent or makeshift shelter in areas south of Gaza City can now cost close to €1,000.
The Israeli military assessment is that the flight of civilians will also weaken Hamas control over the population. “Once more than half a million Palestinians have evacuated, criticism of the Hamas leadership will intensify to the point where signs of its collapse may begin to appear,” said an Israeli security source.
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The Haaretz newspaper reported on Thursday that the IDF is increasingly using local clans in Gaza, which are based on extended families, to fight against Hamas. The militia fighters are paid by Israel and are particularly prominent in the southern areas of Rafah and Khan Younis.
Israel’s controversial far-right finance minister Bezalel Smotrich has said the Gaza Strip could be a “real estate bonanza”. Addressing a Tel Aviv conference, he said he is in talks with the US about dividing up the territory after the war. “We’ve done the demolition phase ... Now we need to build,” he said.
Elsewhere, two Israelis were killed in a shooting and stabbing attack at the Allenby crossing between the West Bank and Jordan. The assailant was reported to be a Jordanian who had been driving a humanitarian aid truck headed for the Gaza Strip. He opened fire at a number of Israelis at the crossing before the truck could be inspected, according to a preliminary military investigation. The crossing was closed after the attack. – Additional reporting: Reuters
