JERUSALEM (AP) – A coalition of major aid groups on Wednesday urged the international community to take stronger steps to stop Israeli attacks in Gaza city. A committee of UN experts discovered Israel was committing genocide in a Palestinian enclave.
That’s because Israel advanced in operations in the already abolished northern part of its territory, bringing the Palestine death toll in Gaza approaching 65,000.
“What we are witnessing in Gaza is not only an unprecedented humanitarian catastrophe, but what the UN Commission on Inquiry is now concluded is genocide,” read a statement from aid groups. “The state must freely use any political, economic and legal tools available to intervene. Rhetoric and half-measures are not sufficient. This moment requires critical action.”
The message was signed by leaders of more than 20 aid organizations operating in Gaza, including the Norwegian Refugee Council, Anella and Save the Children.
The statement came the day after Israel said it started majors Attacks in Gaza City In earnest, I vow to overwhelm the cities that have already been abandoned since nearly two years of war.
On Wednesday, officials at Gaza Hospital said Israel attacked over the territory overnight, killing at least 16 Palestinians, including women and children. More than half of the deaths have been killed in a starving strike in Gaza city, including a child killed in a strike in an apartment in Shati refugee camp and his mother. According to officials at Shifa Hospital, the victims, more than half of the deaths have been killed in the strike.
In central Gaza, Al-Auda Hospital said an Israeli strike struck homes in a Urban Nusairat refugee camp, killing three people, including a pregnant woman. Officials at Nasser Hospital, whose bodies were brought in, were also killed when a strike crashed into a tent in the Mwasi area west of Khan Yunis city.
Israeli military did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the fatal strike, but in the past they have accused Hamas of building military infrastructure within civilian regions.
Gaza deaths from Israel’s retaliatory attacks are approaching 65,000. The war killed more than 64,900 Palestinians, according to Gaza’s Ministry of Health. The ministry, part of Hamas-run government and with medical professionals located, says women and children account for about half of the deaths.
Meanwhile, Israeli forces have announced the opening of a route south for those fleeing Gaza city. Military Arabic spokesman Colonel Avichey Adrie wrote on social media that a new route along Sarah Al Din Street, embracing the Gaza coastline, will open for those heading south for two days starting Wednesday, starting at 12pm local time.
Also on Wednesday, Qatar’s Foreign Ministry issued a statement denounced Israel’s ground attacks in Gaza “in the strongest conditions.” The ministry wrote to X that the operation marked an “extension of the war of genocide” against the Palestinians.
Qatar is furious with and Israeli strike killed five Hamas members last week And local security officers.
After an estimated 1 million Palestinians lived in the Gaza city area, warnings to evacuate began ahead of the attack, with Israeli forces estimated 350,000 people leaving the city. UN estimates on Tuesday said more than 238,000 Palestinians had fled North Gaza in the past month. However, hundreds of thousands more are behind.
Israeli military graphics suggested that by the end of the current operation, the military wanted the whole of the Gaza Strip to take control of everything except for the large sash along the coast.
Israeli forces carried out multiple major raids on Gaza city during the war, causing massive displacement and massive destruction, which later reorganized extremists. This time, Israel has promised to control the entire city, which experts say I’m experiencing hunger.
Israeli military officials spoke on condition of anonymity in line with military guidelines and said on Tuesday they believe there are between 2,000 and 3,000 Hamas militants remaining in Gaza city. Hamas’ military capabilities have been significantly reduced. Currently mainly running Guerilla-style attacksmall groups of fighter jets plant explosives and attack military post bases before they melt.
The war in Gaza began on October 7, 2023, when Hamas-led militants raided southern Israel, killing about 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and acquiring 251 people. Less than half of the 48 hostages believed to be alive remain in Gaza.
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Magiddy reported from Cairo.
