Thousands flee northern Gaza under gunfire after latest Israeli eviction orders

Palestinians fear Israel is seeking to depopulate the area and replace them with settlers

Displaced Palestinians from Beit Lahia arrive in nearby Jabalia, in northern Gaza. AFP

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Israel has issued new forced eviction orders for besieged northern Gaza, sending thousands of civilians fleeing under heavy gunfire and strikes.

Drones mounted with loudspeakers were used to order displaced people to leave the Abu Tammam School complex in Beit Lahia this week.

“Thousands of displaced people fled the schools under the threat of Israeli shelling. These schools were the last refuge for civilians in northern Gaza,” displaced Gazan Amna Hussein told The National. “We left in anguish.”

Fellow Gazan Mohammed Othman said all those seeking shelter there fled. “Drones fired on us, dropped leaflets and blared messages demanding that we leave,” said Mr Othman. Everyone in the schools – over 10,000 people – moved out.”

Over the past few days, most civilians still remaining in northern Gaza had sought shelter at the Abu Tammam complex, viewing it as a final sanctuary. Ms Hussein said the schools were surrounded by Israeli armed forces, leaving families with no choice but to leave in search of safety once again.

“The experience of displacement is deeply harrowing and exhausting,” said Ms Hussein. “We walked a long distance in the freezing cold, under the gaze of the Israeli army, which fired at us multiple times along the way.”

Kamal Adwan Hospital, one of the few remaining hospitals in the north, came under drone strikes on Tuesday and Wednesday. Medical sources told Palestinians news agency Wafa that the hospital has not been able to provide oxygen to patients after a strike damaged supply lines.

Northern Gaza has come under relentless Israeli strikes and has been placed under siege since early October, with many civilians trapped in the area that has been largely cut off from food, water and medical supplies, as well as from aid workers.

The UN warned that the entire population of the north was at risk of famine and dying, but access to the area has been repeatedly denied. Two weeks ago, Save the Children said it had been unable to deliver food for 5,000 families in the north for over seven weeks.

Displaced Palestinians arrive at Jabalia, in northern Gaza, after being ordered by Israeli forces to leave nearby Beit Lahia. AFP

Many there believe that Israel is seeking to empty northern Gaza of civilians.

“The Israeli plan is clear – completely emptying northern Gaza and establishing settlements. Everything happening on the ground supports this idea, without question,” Raed Ghoboun, a 45-year-old displaced father of seven, said.

Mr Ghoboun said many residents of Beit Lahia, Jabalia and nearby Beit Hanoun tried to hold on until the end and remain in their homes, but intense strikes in recent days made it impossible.

“My family and my siblings’ families – around 40 people in total – decided to stay in our homes near the shelters in Beit Lahia, determined to endure until the end,” said Mr Ghoboun.

For more than 60 days, Mr Othman and his family endured relentless bombardment, hunger and thirst in Beit Lahia, refusing to leave. “But what’s happening is beyond all of us,” he said. “The army is using all its power to empty northern Gaza of its residents, displaced people, and everyone else.”

Following the route designated by the Israeli army along Salah Al Din Road, Mr Raed described how men and women were separated at checkpoints. “They inspected us, and after questioning, they released us men. But the experience was harrowing,” he said.

Mr Othman also recounted how Israeli soldiers separated the men, taking them for questioning and checks. “We waited over 10 hours before they released us, but many young men were detained. They stripped them of their clothes, tortured them, and hurled insults and curses at them,” he said.

With the latest wave of orders to leave, Gazans fear that most of northern Gaza’s population may now have been displaced.

“What’s left are a few families near Kamal Adwan Hospital and some people sheltering inside the hospital with the patients. Beyond that, the area is nearly empty – it’s like no one is left,” he continued.