Israel calls for evacuation of civilians from Gaza as ground invasion imminent
Hamas terrorists are hiding in the city's tunnels and using citizens as human shields.
This Friday morning, the Israeli Army issued widespread evacuation orders for half of the 2.3 million Gaza City residents in anticipation of a ground offensive to combat Hamas terrorists following the massacre committed last Saturday in Israel and the subsequent attacks throughout the week.
The Israeli Defense Forces warned civilians to flee to the southern Gaza Strip as Hamas terrorists are hiding in the tunnels in the city to conceal their whereabouts and conceal themselves among the civilian population.
IDF announcement sent to civilians in Gaza City:
He will only be able to return to Gaza City when another announcement is made allowing it. Do not approach the security fence area with the State of Israel.
Despite these warnings, Hamas terrorists continue to try to use Palestinians as human shields and this Friday again called on Gazan citizens not to leave their homes. In a statement, the terrorists called the Israeli army's warnings "fake propaganda."
Seven days of war against terrorism
The warning was made on the sixth day of Operation Iron Swords against Hamas after the terrorist raid that has so far left more than 1,200 Israelis dead, more than 3,200 injured and seen more than 6,000 rockets launched against Israel. The terrorists are also holding more than 100 Israeli citizens hostage after the largest massacre of Jewish people since the Holocaust.
In Gaza, at least 1,500 people were killed following the Israeli response to the terrorist attack.
Meanwhile, international reactions to the massacre continue to occur. The White House announced that 27 American citizens have died in the conflict.
On Thursday, it also became known that Ursula von der Leyen, president of the European Commission, arrived in Israel. "I have arrived in Israel with [European Parliament President Roberta Metsola] to express our solidarity with the Israeli people in the wake of the horrific Hamas terrorist attack," she wrote on X (formerly Twitter).
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu maintained that "we will destroy Hamas and we will win." However, he detailed that this will take time. "This is only the beginning. Our enemies have only just begun to pay the price. I won’t detail what will come next. We will destroy Hamas, and we will win. It will take time. But we will end this war stronger than ever," Netanyahu stressed.