Israel's army warns Palestinians: "Gaza City is now a battlefield"

2023-10-28 18:00:02

The shelters in this zone are “not safe,” the army said Saturday in leaflets dropped from warplanes over the Gaza Strip. The civilians are once again asked to flee southwards “immediately”.

“Difficult and long”

According to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the “second phase” of the war with Hamas has begun. Netanyahu said on Saturday evening that the war in Gaza would be “difficult and long.” At first it was not clear whether this had begun the long-awaited ground offensive by the Israeli army.

Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said Israel had no interest in expanding the war but was “prepared on all fronts.” Opposition politician and Israeli War Cabinet member Benny Gantz said the “ground operation” could help bring the hostage back, according to Archyde.com.

“War in a new phase”

Shortly before, the Israeli government announced that Israel’s war with Hamas had “entered a new phase.” “Last night the ground shook in Gaza. We attacked above the ground and below the ground,” Gallant said in a video message, referring to the Israeli bombing of tunnels in the Gaza Strip.

According to an Israeli army spokesman, Israeli troops have already killed several senior commanders of the Islamist Hamas. According to the military, these include a Hamas naval commander and Hamas leader Asem Abu Rakaba, who is responsible for air strikes. Among other things, he coordinated the use of drones and hang gliders and was involved in planning the massacre of Israeli civilians on October 7th. “He led the terrorists who invaded Israel using hang gliders and was responsible for the drone attacks on Israeli military posts,” the army said in a statement. There have been no casualties among the Israeli soldiers so far.

Use should continue

According to Defense Minister Gallant, Israel’s war with Hamas has entered a “new phase” with the bombing of tunnels in Gaza. Gallant announced, however, that the army would continue its operation that began during the night. The Israeli army has repeatedly called on people in the north of the Gaza Strip, most recently on Saturday, to flee to the south of the sealed-off coastal strip for their own safety. According to the military, at least around 700,000 people have already done this. The United Nations even speaks of 1.4 million internally displaced people. In total, more than 2.2 million people live in the densely populated area.

The Israeli army warned Palestinian civilians on Saturday that Gaza City and its surrounding areas had now become a “battlefield.” The shelters in this zone are “not safe,” the army said Saturday in leaflets dropped from warplanes over the Gaza Strip. The civilians are once again asked to flee southwards “immediately”.

Air alert in the Tel Aviv area

On Saturday, Israeli cities were again shelled from the Gaza Strip. Sirens wailed several times in several towns in the border area with the coastal strip, the Israeli army said. There were also air alerts in the greater Tel Aviv area and in Ashkelon. According to police, a building was hit by a rocket in the desert city of Beersheva. There were initially no reports of injuries here either. The Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of the Islamist organization Hamas ruling the Gaza Strip, claimed responsibility for the attacks from Gaza.

Fighting on the border with Lebanon

There were also clashes again on Israel’s border with Lebanon on Saturday. The Israeli army said several anti-tank missiles and mortar shells were fired at Israel from Lebanon. Military posts along the border were also attacked. The bullets hit open areas. The Israeli army fired back and attacked military facilities of the Lebanese Shiite militia Hezbollah. There have been increasing incidents on the border between Israel and Lebanon since the beginning of the Gaza war. There have already been fatalities on both sides.

The Israeli army has announced an increase in humanitarian aid deliveries to the Palestinian population. “We are extending humanitarian assistance to the residents of the Gaza Strip who have gone to the area south of Wadi Gaza,” the army spokesman said. During the course of the day, trucks with food, water and medicine will be allowed to be imported into the south of the coastal strip.

WHO calls for a ceasefire

The World Health Organization (WHO) has again called on the parties to the conflict for an urgently needed ceasefire. Reports of bombings near major hospitals are of great concern. The WHO reiterated that it was impossible to evacuate patients without endangering their lives. Clinics across the Gaza Strip are already at capacity due to the number of injured so far and cannot cope with the dramatic increase in patient numbers while simultaneously housing thousands of civilians, the WHO said on Saturday. During the night-time advance of Israeli troops into the Gaza Strip, there was a total communications and power outage for health workers, patients and civilians.

Solidarity run for hostages

Following the expansion of Israeli ground operations in the Gaza Strip, around 600 people took part in a solidarity run for the hostages held there in Tel Aviv on Saturday. They wore starting numbers with names and pictures of the hostages, as the Israeli broadcaster Kan reported. The Israeli news site ynet reported that relatives of the hostages had called for an urgent meeting with the so-called war cabinet after the ground operations were expanded. “That night was the worst of all so far, and we spent it in great fear,” ynet quoted relatives from a statement. There is great uncertainty regarding the fate of the hostages in Gaza, “who are being held there and are also exposed to heavy bombardment.”

Meirav Leshem Gonen, mother of a female hostage, told Israeli Army Radio on Saturday: “I don’t know anything about strategy, I know something about motherhood – and I feel like this is a war we’ve already lost. How can you “Make sure my daughter and the other hostages actually come home alive?”

So far, around 1,400 Israelis have died as a result of Hamas’ terror. On the other hand, 7,650 people have died in the Gaza Strip due to Israeli attacks, according to the Palestinian Health Authority in Ramallah. 19,450 were injured.

Video: ORF correspondent Tim Cupal reports from the border with Gaza in southern Israel