As the Israeli military starts a big ground attack, thousands of Palestinians are leaving Gaza City. An Israeli military official, who asked to remain anonymous, told the Associated Press that the “main phase” of the Gaza City assault had begun, with troops pouring in from the edges. This rise in violence comes after weeks of military buildup and more airstrikes.
Israel Katz, the country’s defense minister, said that “Gaza is burning” and promised not to stop until Hamas is crushed. The Israeli press says the operation might go on for months. Hospitals in the area say that the most recent attacks on the city had killed at least 69 Palestinians.
As the attack started, a lot of people had to leave their homes. Palestinians were spotted driving south down the coastal route in cars full of their things toward an Israeli-designated humanitarian zone. The UN says that over 220,000 Palestinians have already left northern Gaza, and more than 70,000 of them did so in the last several days. Before the evacuation warnings, there were about 1 million Palestinians living in the Gaza City area. The Israeli army thinks that 350,000 people have left the city since then.
In a troubling turn of events, those who are fleeing Gaza say that trucks are charging about $1,000 to take them to the humanitarian zone, even though many families in Gaza City are starving.
Legal Claims and Reactions from Other Countries
The offensive has been quickly condemned by other countries. Antonio Guterres, the UN Secretary-General, said that Israel was “determined to go up to the end” and not open to “serious negotiations to end the war.” Guterres said, “There will be no peace in the Middle East and extremism will spread everywhere else in the world if there is not a two-state solution.”
At the same time, a 72-page legal report by a UN Commission of Inquiry said that Israel had committed genocide in Gaza because of the number of deaths, the blocking of relief, and the forced displacement. The article also says that high-ranking Israeli officials, such Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, are responsible for these actions. Israel has strongly denied the report, calling it “scandalous” and “fake.”
Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba has opted not to go to a UN meeting about a two-state solution. According to media, this is probably to have good relations with the US and keep Israel from becoming more hardline.
In the meantime, as the crisis gets worse, Prime Minister Netanyahu said that President Donald Trump has asked him to come to the White House on September 29, after he speaks at the UN General Assembly. This would be Netanyahu’s fourth trip to the White House since Trump became president.
The conflict has ramifications that reached beyond the area. For example, Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen fired missiles at Israel, setting off sirens in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv. The incident happened after Israeli planes bombed the port city of Hodeida in Yemen, which was controlled by rebels.