- Israeli tanks enter Gaza City’s Shejaia neighborhood, prompting residents to flee south.
- Bombings kill at least eight people in Shejaia and Sabra neighborhoods.
- Gaza remains at high risk of famine, with severe food insecurity affecting over 495,000 people.
Israeli tanks stormed the Shejaia neighborhood in Gaza City on Thursday, surprising residents who were already reeling from overnight bombings. The tanks, followed by drones, attacked in the early afternoon, forcing Palestinians to flee south. The Palestinian Civil Emergency Service reported casualties, but rescue teams were unable to reach them due to the ongoing offensive.
Residents described the sudden violence. “It sounded as if the war is restarting, a series of bombings that destroyed several houses in our area and shook the buildings,” said Mohammad Jamal, 25, from Gaza City. The bombings earlier in the day had killed three people in Shejaia and five more in the nearby Sabra neighborhood.
Israel accused militants of hiding among civilians and issued a warning to residents to evacuate immediately. “To all residents and displaced people in the Shejaia area and the new neighborhoods… for your safety, you must evacuate immediately south on Salah al-Din Street to the humanitarian zone,” posted army spokesperson Avichay Adraee on social media.
Despite the warning, tanks had already rolled in, and people from the eastern suburb were seen running west under fire, as the road south was blocked. In Rafah, a southern city in Gaza, drone footage showed widespread destruction, with entire villages wiped out.
More than eight months into Israel’s war on Gaza, triggered by a Hamas-led attack on October 7, aid officials warn that the enclave remains at high risk of famine. Over 495,000 people in Gaza face severe food insecurity, with reports of malnutrition and dehydration deaths continuing to rise.
“We are being starved in Gaza City and are being hunted by tanks and planes with no hope that this war is ever ending,” said Jamal. The death of another child on Wednesday brought the number of children who have died from malnutrition and dehydration to at least 31, according to a Gaza health official.
Israel denies creating famine conditions, blaming aid distribution issues on agencies and accusing Hamas of diverting aid. The conflict, which began with the October 7 Hamas attack that killed around 1,200 Israelis and took over 250 hostages, has resulted in more than 37,000 Palestinian deaths, according to Gaza’s health ministry.
