Eyewitnesses told Agence France-Presse on Monday that dozens of Israeli tanks, troop carriers and bulldozers entered the southern Gaza Strip near the town of Khan Yunis.
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Israel entered into a war with Hamas after the bloody attack launched by the Palestinian Islamic movement on its territory on October 7. Since then, the Israeli army has launched more than 10,000 raids into Gaza, which is controlled by Hamas, and launched a ground offensive in the north on October 27.
Hundreds of thousands of Palestinians have fled to the south, which is now under intense bombardment, as the Israeli army has indicated that it intends to expand its ground operations to eliminate Hamas leaders and infrastructure.
Its strikes in the south have been focused for several days on the Khan Yunis sector.
Amin Abu Haul (59 years old) said that Israeli military vehicles have now penetrated “to a depth of two kilometers” into the village of Al-Qarara, northeast of Khan Yunis.
He added, “The tanks entered through the Kissufim military border checkpoint towards the west and advanced more than two kilometers into the village of Al-Qarara, and are now gathering in the Abu Haul sector, west of Salah al-Din Road.”
“We have a lot of people in the middle of the day with my women and other children, as well as my parents, who walked on the road to Salaheddine,” which crosses the border between the North and the Gaza Strip, where Moaz Mohammed lives. , 34 years.
He added: “They control it from both sides and are now cutting it off between Deir al-Balah and Khan Yunis, and are firing bullets and tank shells at all cars and people trying to move in the area.”
Displaced Palestinians, who were forced to flee to the southern Gaza Strip, are exposed to daily aerial bombardment, which causes many casualties, deaths and injuries every day. They fear that they will be pushed towards Egypt due to the massive entry of tanks and infantry into the area.
Today, Monday, during a phone call with US Vice President Kamala Harris, Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas affirmed his opposition to “any forced displacement of Palestinians,” whether from Gaza or from all the occupied territories.
An Israeli army spokesman denied any intention to force Gazans to leave their lands and enter Egypt. “We are not trying to evacuate people there,” Jonathan Conricus told reporters.
But in mid-November, Israeli Intelligence Minister Gila Gamliel called on the international community to “encourage voluntary resettlement” of Palestinians “outside the Gaza Strip,” “instead of sending money to rebuild” the area.
