UNICEF Spokesperson, James Elder has warned that creating “so-called safe zones” for civilians to flee to within the Gaza Strip is impossible amid Israel’s bombing campaign.
The Israeli army, which initially focused much of its offensive on the north of the enclave, has now dropped leaflets on parts of the south, telling Palestinian civilians there to flee to other areas.
“The so-called safe zones … are not scientific, they are not rational, they are not possible, and I think the authorities are aware of this,” UNICEF Spokesperson, James Elder told reporters in Geneva via video link from Cairo.
Richard Peeperkorn, the World Health Organization representative for the occupied Palestinian territories, told reporters via video link from Gaza that “the situation is getting worse by the hour.”
He said, “There’s intensified bombing going on all around, including here in the southern areas, Khan Younis and even in Rafah.”
Overnight and into Tuesday morning, Israel ramped up attacks in the south of the enclave as it continues its ground offensive. Overnight attacks also occurred in the north of the Gaza Strip, including Jabalia al-Balad where a number of Palestinians were killed.
The death toll in Gaza from Israeli attacks has reached 15,900, the Palestinian Health Ministry announced.
Of those killed, more than 250 were health workers, Health Minister Mai al-Kaila said while speaking in Ramallah, occupied West Bank.
Gaza’s health ministry is warning of a “massacre” at Kamal Adwan Hospital in northern Gaza, where Israeli tanks and snipers are reportedly surrounding the facility and “shooting at anyone who moves”.
Bodies are piling up outside the hospital, where some 7,000 Palestinians are sheltering inside, Health Ministry Director-General Munir al-Bursh said, adding that Israeli army attacks have already killed 108 civilians and injured dozens in the hospital’s vicinity.
“We fear a massacre inside Kamal Adwan Hospital, as happened in [al-Shifa Hospital] and the [Indonesian Hospital]”, al-Bursh said.
Speaking with a news agency from inside the hospital, al-Bursh stated, “The Israeli occupation forces have laid siege to the facility from all sides. Patients and those who took shelter here are gripped with fear and overwhelmed by horror.
“The Israeli forces are attacking with the aim of forcibly removing all those inside the hospital. These are patients, victims and displaced civilians.
“We, the medical staff, are holding our ground. We are standing by our patients. We will continue to serve our people by all means left here at Kamal Adwan Hospital.”
U.S-made Munitions Used Israeli Army Attacks
An investigation carried out by Amnesty International revealed that US-made Joint Direct Attack Munitions (JDAM) were used in two separate air attacks on civilian homes.
The rights watchdog has also called for the attacks that killed 19 children, 14 women, and 10 men to be investigated as war crimes. The two homes were in Wadi Gaza, where the Israeli military had ordered residents of northern Gaza to evacuate on 13 October.
“The fact that US-made munitions are being used by the Israeli military in unlawful attacks with deadly consequences for civilians should be an urgent wake-up call to the Biden administration. The US-made weapons facilitated the mass killings of extended families,” said Agnès Callamard, Amnesty International’s Secretary General.
“Two families have been decimated in these strikes, further proof that the Israeli military is responsible for unlawfully killing and injuring civilians in its bombardment of Gaza.”
Israeli forces struck “a number of Hezbollah terror targets” after several “launches” crossed into northern Israel from Lebanon, which fell into “open areas”.
In a statement, the army said the fighter jets targeted “terrorist infrastructure and military posts used for weapons storage and by terrorist operatives”.
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