Israel’s Planned Offensive on Gaza City Risks Disastrous Consequences for Palestinian Civilians

Israel plans to cease aerial deliveries to Gaza City and restrict the entry of humanitarian aid trucks prior to a significant military operation, a source informed CNN. The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) has expressed concern that Israel’s proposed mass evacuation is impracticable due to the dire conditions in the besieged region.

Israel seeks to fully control Gaza’s largest city, following nearly two years of conflict, despite warnings that the ensuing campaign will result in catastrophic and intolerable consequences for Palestinians in the embattled area.

In recent days, the Israeli military has conducted heavy bombardments and ground attacks on Gaza City, according to eyewitnesses and Palestinian authorities. These actions have severely impacted essential services and left hundreds of thousands of people confined to an increasingly limited space.

On Saturday, an Israeli air strike on Al-Nasr Street in western Gaza City resulted in the death of at least 11 Palestinians, including six children, as reported by local health officials. Additionally, 25 individuals were injured, according to Mohammed Abu Salmiya, director of Al-Shifa Hospital in northern Gaza. The casualty count is expected to rise.

Images captured by CNN from the hospital’s courtyard depict a line of deceased children swathed in floral shrouds. Mourning family members stand over the lifeless bodies, including a toddler wearing a grey onesie adorned with dinosaur prints.

“I don’t understand what happened,” one man told CNN. “These children were innocent. What was their crime?”

The Israeli military has been contacted for comment regarding the strike.

On Friday, the military designated Gaza City as a “dangerous combat zone” ahead of the planned offensive, which Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stated would target what he refers to as one of Hamas’ remaining strongholds.

This week, Israeli drones patrolled multiple locations within and surrounding the city, distributing leaflets warning residents to evacuate towards the south of Wadi Gaza. The leaflets read: “To everyone in Gaza City and Jabalya area, as you were previously warned, the Israeli army is expanding its operations toward the west. For your safety, evacuate immediately south from Wadi Gaza.”

However, the ICRC has condemned this action.

“A mass evacuation of Gaza City cannot ever be executed safely and with dignity under current conditions,” stated ICRC President Mirjana Spoljaric in a statement, emphasizing that vulnerable Palestinians, including the malnourished, disabled, and injured, are unable to relocate.

“Such an evacuation would trigger a massive population movement that no area within the Gaza Strip can accommodate given the extensive destruction of civilian infrastructure and severe shortages of food, water, shelter, and medical care,” added Spoljaric.

Over one million people have been displaced in central and western Gaza City alone, as reported by a municipal spokesperson on Saturday. The situation is already grave, according to Asem Alnabih, who warned of an expected increase in casualties if the military operation expands further.

“We are facing a total collapse of services, as the occupation continues to prevent the entry of fuel and machinery needed,” said Alnabih.

A senior UN official has expressed concern that residents within Gaza City, who face physical exhaustion, hunger, malnutrition, and fatigue, are also under constant threat of bombing, thereby weakening their ability to make life-or-death decisions.

“These people are facing death,” said Sam Rose, head of the UN’s agency for Palestine refugees (UNRWA) in Gaza. “They’re not only facing the threat of an invasion but also being terrorized 24 hours a day.”

The Israeli military has announced plans to discontinue 10-hour “tactical pauses” in hostilities, which were instituted a month ago following severe aid restrictions, siege, and bombing that resulted in deadly starvation within the enclave.

In the past 24 hours, an additional 10 individuals have perished due to starvation and malnutrition in Gaza, bringing the total number of Palestinian fatalities since October 7, 2023, to at least 332. Among the deceased, 124 were children, according to the health ministry’s report on Saturday.

Israeli strikes following the Hamas-led attacks in October 2023 have resulted in the death of 63,371 Palestinians and injured another 159,835 individuals, as reported by the Ministry of Health within the enclave.