Israeli tanks moved into southern and eastern parts of Deir al-Balah on Monday for the first time since the war in Gaza began. They targeted what military sources claim are Hamas strongholds and potential hostage locations. The area is full of Palestinians who were displaced during the war, which has been going on for almost 21 months. Local medics said tank shelling in the area struck homes and mosques, leaving at least three Palestinians dead and several others injured. The United Nations confirmed that two of its guesthouses were hit in the assault, despite all parties being notified in advance of their locations. “UN staff remain in Deir al-Balah, and two UN guesthouses have been struck, despite parties having been informed of the locations of U.N. premises, which are inviolable. These locations – as with all civilian sites – must be protected, regardless of evacuation orders,” said UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric. Staff from the World Health Organization (WHO) were also caught up in the violence. The WHO’s residence and warehouse in Deir al-Balah were attacked, prompting Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus to demand the immediate release of a detained staff member. Three others, including family members, have since been freed.“Israeli military entered the premises, forcing women and children to evacuate on foot toward Al-Mawasi amid active conflict. Male staff and family members were handcuffed, stripped, interrogated on the spot, and screened at gunpoint,” WHO said. Despite the attacks, WHO vowed to continue operations in Deir al-Balah, which has become a sanctuary for thousands displaced from elsewhere in Gaza. Hundreds more fled once Israeli evacuation orders were issued ahead of Monday’s incursion.Turning towards south, in Khan Younis, an Israeli airstrike killed at least five people, a husband, wife, and their two children among them, as they sheltered in a tent, medics told Reuters. Gaza’s health ministry reported that at least 130 Palestinians were killed and over 1,000 injured in the past 24 hours, among the highest daily tolls in weeks. No official comment has yet been made by the Israeli military on the specific strikes in Deir al-Balah or Khan Younis. The Israeli military said that the Deir al-Balah offensive is part of an effort to locate hostages believed to be held by Hamas. Of the 50 hostages thought to remain in Gaza, around 20 are believed to be alive. Families of the captives have demanded answers from the government, warning, “The people of Israel will not forgive anyone who knowingly endangered the hostages,” Reuters reported. Meanwhile, humanitarian conditions in Gaza are collapsing. The UN has warned of a worsening hunger crisis that has already claimed at least 19 lives since Saturday. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres expressed alarm at the crumbling lifelines in Gaza, where hospitals are running out of fuel, food, and medicine. Medical staff are surviving on a single daily meal, with hundreds of residents turning up at hospitals seeking aid amid exhaustion and malnutrition. On Monday, Israeli undercover forces reportedly detained Dr Marwan Al-Hams, head of Gaza’s field hospitals, in a deadly raid outside an International Committee of the Red Cross facility. The growing death toll and dire humanitarian situation threaten to derail ongoing ceasefire negotiations involving Hamas, Israel, and mediators from Qatar, Egypt, and the United States. A senior Hamas official told Reuters the worsening crisis could impact talks on a proposed 60-day truce and hostage exchange. UNRWA, the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, said it is receiving desperate messages from staff inside Gaza reporting starvation, while enough food to feed the entire population for three months remains stuck in warehouses just outside the border. “Lift the siege and let aid in safely and at scale,” the agency urged. Israeli forces have come under increasing international criticism over aid access and civilian casualties. On Sunday and Monday, Gaza’s health ministry said 103 Palestinians were killed while waiting for aid near distribution sites. Israel said its troops had fired warning shots to disperse what it called an “immediate threat”, but questioned the reported casualty numbers. In a joint call on Monday, Britain and over 20 other nations demanded an immediate end to the war and criticised Israel’s handling of humanitarian aid. Israel rejected the statement, claiming it was “disconnected from reality” and risked encouraging Hamas. The conflict began on 7 October 2023 when Hamas militants launched an unprecedented attack on Israel, killing 1,200 people and taking 251 hostages, according to Israeli authorities. Since then, over 59,000 Palestinians have been killed, and nearly the entire population displaced, amid an Israeli military campaign that shows no signs of easing.
