At least 40 Palestinians killed in Israeli military attacks in Gaza Strip

Gaza: At least 40 Palestinians were killed by Israeli military attacks across the Gaza Strip on Tuesday, October 15, as Israeli troops reinforced their control over Jabalia, the enclave’s northern region, in the midst of intense fighting with militants commanded by Hamas.

At least eleven individuals were killed by Israeli fire near Al-Falouja in Jabalia, the biggest of Gaza’s eight historic refugee camps, according to Palestinian health authorities. Ten more people were killed when an Israeli missile hit a home in Bani Suhaila, in the eastern Khan Younis region of the south.

Three homes in the Sabra neighborhood of Gaza City were demolished by an Israeli airstrike earlier on Tuesday. The local civil emergency service said that they had retrieved two dead from the scene, but they were still looking for the other twelve persons who were thought to have been inside the houses at the time of the hit.

A home in the Nuseirat camp in central Gaza was damaged by an explosion, killing five more people.

For almost ten days, Israel has been launching an operation against Jabalia, pulling soldiers back to northern regions heavily bombarded during the first several months of the conflict.

Concerns about Israel’s intention to remove people from the north of the densely populated enclave have been expressed by Palestinians and UN agencies in relation to the operation; Israel has refuted these claims.

According to a Tuesday statement from the UN human rights office, it seemed as if the Israeli force was “cutting off North Gaza completely from the rest of the Gaza Strip.”.

“Families in northern Gaza are dealing with unspeakable dread, the death of loved ones, disorientation, and tiredness due to the continued, intensive fighting and evacuation orders. The International Committee of the Red Cross’s (ICRC) Gaza’s director of sub-delegation, Adrian Zimmerman, said in a statement that “people must be able to flee safely, without facing further danger.”

Many people, such as the ill and crippled, are unable to flee and are protected by international humanitarian law; thus, every effort must be made to prevent damage to them. “Everyone who is displaced has the right to safely return home,” he said.

With the stated intention of driving away Hamas members who are attempting to reorganize there, the Israeli military has now surrounded the Jabalia camp and pushed tanks into the neighboring towns of Beit Lahiya and Beit Hanoun.

Residents in southern Gaza are advised to flee their houses and seek refuge by the Israeli military. According to UN and Palestinian authorities, there was nowhere secure in Gaza.

Israeli authorities disputed that there was a systematic strategy to remove residents from Jabalia or other northern districts, claiming that the purpose of the evacuation orders was to separate Hamas combatants from civilians.

According to the armed wing of Hamas, rebels and Israeli soldiers were fighting violent combat in and around Jabalia.

Additionally, Zimmerman called for the protection of northern healthcare institutions, citing their difficulties in providing basic medical care.

The three hospitals in Gaza were told to evacuate by the army, according to the health ministry, but medical personnel claimed they were committed to going on with their work despite being overburdened by the increasing number of victims.

UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres denounced the number of civilian deaths in northern Gaza on Monday.

The majority of Gaza’s 2.3 million inhabitants dwell in the northern region, and many of them were compelled to leave their homes during Israel’s first attack on the territory due to intense bombardment.

Approximately 400,000 individuals were estimated by the UN to be left.

Following the Islamist group’s Oct. 7, 2023, assault on Israel, which according to Israeli estimates resulted in 1,200 deaths and around 250 hostages being carried to Gaza, Israel began its operation against Hamas. As of yet, the onslaught has claimed the lives of almost 42,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza’s health officials.