As Israel is getting ready for a large attack on Gaza, more than one million Palestinians from Gaza had to flee, while many are still living there, risking their lives.
A few hours after the attack from Hamas militia group on Israel that took place last week on Saturday, Israeli air force started carrying out deadly airstrikes in Gaza which still continue to this Tuesday. The result, as Palestinian health authorities reported, has been the death of nearly 3 thousands Palestinians and the injury of many more.
Hamas says that the Saturday attacks were carried out in response to the storming of the Al-Aqsa Mosque in occupied East Jerusalem and the growing violence against Palestinians by both the Israeli settlers and members of the Netanyahu government.
And now, as more than a week has passed from Hamas attacks, Israel is still targeting areas in Gaza, forcing more than one million of Palestinians fleeing their homes to save their lives.
Videos from inside Gaza show Palestinians carrying whatever belongings they can, in bags and suitcases, or packed onto three-wheeled motorbikes, battered cars, vans and even donkey carts to live to any place other than their homes.
“No electricity, no water, no Internet. I feel like I’m losing my humanity,” said Mona Abdel Hamid, 55, who fled Gaza City to Rafah in the south of the enclave, and is having to stay with strangers.
Israel’s coming attack would be a big mistake, Biden says
This Monday, the spokesman for the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) Jonathan Conricus announced the biggest land, air and sea attack involving a significant ground operation in Gaza in the coming days. “We are at the beginning of intense or enhanced military operations in Gaza City,” Conricus said, adding that “it would be unsafe for civilians to stay there.”
Rebuking Israel for the announcement, US President Joe Biden said in an interview with the CBS this Tuesday that while the initial invading was needed, any more attacks to occupy Gaza would be a “big mistake.”
“Look, what happened in Gaza, in my view, is Hamas and the extreme elements of Hamas don’t represent all the Palestinian people. And I think that it would be a mistake for Israel to occupy Gaza again. But taking out the extremists” there, he added, “is a necessary requirement,” Biden said.
“likewise, Iran warned of any further invasion by Israel, with the Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian saying this Tuesday that “no one can guarantee the control of the situation and the non-expansion of the conflicts if Israel sends its soldiers into Gaza.”
The United States also demanded China to come to the scene and use its influence in the region to ease tensions between Israel and Hamas. On Sunday Foreign Minister Wang Yi said Israel’s response had “gone beyond the scope of self-defense,” and demanded that it “cease its collective punishment of the people of Gaza.”
Foreign governments and aid agencies, including the UN and Red Cross, have also repeatedly criticized Israel’s evacuation order. The UN agency supporting Palestinian refugees said Sunday that some one million Palestinians had already been displaced in the first week of the conflict, and that the number is likely to increase as there is no sign of easing tensions between the two sides.
Lynn Hastings, the UN humanitarian coordinator for the Palestinian territories, also rebuked Israel’s continuing attacks on Gaza and noted this Monday that Israel has said “they want to destroy Hamas, but their current trajectory is going to destroy Gaza.”
