The Israel-Hamas war reached its 25th day on Tuesday, with Israeli forces battling Hamas militants and attacking underground compounds. In the midst of expanded battle, at least 800,000 Palestinians have fled to southern Gaza to escape Israeli bombardment on the besieged territory.
Over half of Gaza's 2.3 million Palestinians have fled their homes, among them hundreds sheltering in overcrowded UN-run shelters and hospitals. The UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA), said that roughly 672,000 Palestinians are sheltering in its schools and other facilities.
However, tens of thousands of people remain in and around Gaza City ahead of a looming ground assault, and casualties are expected to mount on both sides as the battle moves into dense, residential neighbourhoods.
There has been no central electricity in Gaza for weeks, and Israel has barred the entry of fuel needed to power emergency generators for hospitals and homes. This comes as more than 8,300 people, mostly women and children, have been killed in the Gaza Strip due to relentless airstrikes and ground operations.
The military said it struck some 300 militant targets over the past day, including compounds inside tunnels, and that troops had engaged in several battles with Palestinian militants armed with anti-tank missiles and machine guns.
Netanyahu rejects calls for ceasefire
Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu welcomed her home, saying the "achievement" by Israel's security forces “illustrates our commitment to free all the hostages.” He also rejected calls for a cease-fire to facilitate the release of captives or end the war, which he has said will be long and difficult.
“Calls for a cease-fire are calls for Israel to surrender to Hamas,” he told a press conference. "That will not happen.” He also said he has no plans to resign in the face of mounting anger over the failure of Israel's vaunted security forces to prevent the worst surprise attack on the country in a half-century.
Hamas and other militant groups are believed to be holding some 240 captives, including men, women and children. Netanyahu has faced mounting pressure to secure their release even as Israel wages a punishing war it says is aimed at crushing Hamas and ending its 16-year rule over the territory.
Regarding the rising humanitarian crisis in Gaza, Israel has allowed more than 150 trucks loaded with food and medicine to enter Gaza from Egypt over the past several days, but aid workers say it's not enough to meet rapidly growing needs.
The World Health Organization said two hospitals have been damaged and an ambulance destroyed in Gaza over the last two days. The World Health Organization said two hospitals have been damaged and an ambulance destroyed in Gaza over the last two days.
Urgent ceasefire is a 'matter of life and death': UN
The head of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees told a UN emergency meeting on Monday “an immediate humanitarian ceasefire has become a matter of life and death for millions,” accusing Israel of “collective punishment” of Palestinians and the forced displacement of civilians.
Philippe Lazzarini warned that a further breakdown of civil order following the looting of the agency's warehouses by Palestinians searching for food and other aid “will make it extremely difficult, if not impossible, for the largest UN agency in Gaza to continue operating."
Briefings to the Security Council by Lazzarini, the head of the UN children's agency UNICEF and a senior UN humanitarian official painted a dire picture of the catastrophic humanitarian situation in Gaza 23 days after Hamas' surprise October 7 attacks in Israel, and its ongoing retaliatory military action aimed at “obliterating” the militant group, which controls Gaza.
(with inputs from AP)
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