KHAN YOUNIS, Gaza Strip. Israeli forces intensified their ground operation in Gaza on Monday, advancing on two fronts toward the territory’s main city. The situation in Gaza has become increasingly dire, with mounting concerns over airstrikes hitting hospitals where thousands of Palestinians have sought shelter alongside wounded individuals.
A distressing video that circulated on social media depicted an Israeli tank and bulldozer blocking Gaza’s main north-south highway, a critical escape route. The Israeli military had previously advised Palestinians to use this road to flee the expanding ground offensive. If this vital route is blocked, hundreds of thousands of Palestinians in the north of the territory will have no means of escape, leaving them trapped in a perilous situation.
When questioned about the deployment of forces on the road, Israeli military spokesman Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari stated, “we expanded our operations,” but refrained from providing specific details.
The video, captured by a local journalist, showed a car approaching an earth barrier across the road. The vehicle came to a halt and turned back. As it drove away, a tank seemingly opened fire, resulting in a massive explosion engulfing the car. The journalist, in another vehicle, frantically fled the scene, urging an approaching ambulance and other vehicles to turn back. Tragically, the Gaza Health Ministry later reported that three people in the targeted car lost their lives.
Amid this turmoil, the militant Hamas movement governing Gaza released a video on Monday, purportedly showcasing three women captured during their Oct. 7 attack inside Israel. One of the women delivered a brief statement, presumably under duress, criticizing Israel’s response to the hostage crisis.
Hamas and other militant groups had seized around 240 individuals during the deadly raid, announcing that they would release them in exchange for thousands of Palestinian prisoners held by Israel. Israel, however, has dismissed this offer.
The Israeli ground offensive has positioned their forces on both sides of Gaza City and the surrounding areas of northern Gaza, marking what Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu referred to as a “second stage” of the conflict initiated by Hamas’s brutal Oct. 7 incursion. Casualties on both sides are expected to rise significantly if Israeli forces expand their ground operation, potentially leading to battles with Palestinian militants in densely populated residential areas.
Israel had ordered Palestinians to evacuate the north, where Gaza City is located, and move south. However, hundreds of thousands have remained in the north due in part to Israeli strikes targeting so-called safe zones. According to U.N. figures, approximately 117,000 displaced people, hoping to stay safe from strikes, are currently sheltering in hospitals in northern Gaza alongside thousands of patients and medical staff.
The Gaza Health Ministry reported that the death toll among Palestinians has exceeded 8,300, with the majority being women and children. This figure is unprecedented in decades of Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and more than 1.4 million people in Gaza have been displaced from their homes.
On the Israeli side, over 1,400 people have lost their lives, with most of them being civilians killed during Hamas’s initial attack, marking another unprecedented figure in the ongoing conflict.
Video footage released by the Israeli military on Monday showed armored vehicles moving through buildings, with soldiers taking positions inside a house. Hagari confirmed that additional infantry, armored, engineering, and artillery units had entered Gaza, and the operations were set to “expand and intensify.” Despite the escalation of operations, Israel has stopped short of categorizing its efforts as an all-out invasion.
The Israeli military reported on Monday that overnight, their troops had successfully neutralized dozens of militants who had been launching attacks from inside buildings and tunnels. In recent days, they claimed to have struck over 600 militant targets, including weapons depots and anti-tank missile launch positions. However, independent verification of these reports remains a challenge.
The fighting between Israeli forces and Hamas militants continues, with clashes observed in the northwest Gaza Strip, and Palestinian militants persist in firing rockets into Israel, including its commercial hub, Tel Aviv.
Meanwhile, the situation for crowded hospitals in northern Gaza is becoming increasingly precarious. Recent airstrikes have struck near Gaza City’s Shifa and Al Quds hospitals, as well as the Indonesian and Turkish hospitals in northern Gaza, according to reports from the U.N. and residents. Concerningly, all ten hospitals operating in northern Gaza have received evacuation orders from the U.N.’s office for the coordination of humanitarian affairs. However, hospital staff has chosen to remain, as evacuation would likely result in the death of patients on ventilators.
Notably, tens of thousands of civilians are currently seeking refuge in Shifa Hospital, which is the largest healthcare facility in the territory. Israel has accused Hamas of operating a secret command post beneath the hospital, although they have not provided substantial evidence to support this claim. Hamas has consistently denied these allegations.
Moreover, airstrikes have struck within 50 meters (yards) of Al Quds Hospital, shortly after it received two calls from Israeli authorities on Sunday, ordering it to evacuate, according to the Palestinian Red Crescent rescue service. The strike caused damage to the hospital, blowing out windows and covering rooms in debris. Reportedly, approximately 14,000 people are seeking shelter at the Al Quds Hospital.
Israel maintains that it targets Hamas fighters and infrastructure, asserting that militants operate among civilians, thereby putting them in danger.
Beyond the ongoing conflict, living conditions for civilians in Gaza are rapidly deteriorating. The availability of food, water, medicine, and fuel is running dangerously low, compounded by a weeks-long Israeli siege. In response to this crisis, a humanitarian aid convoy consisting of 33 trucks arrived in Gaza from Egypt on Sunday. While this represents the largest aid delivery yet, it is still insufficient to meet the needs of Gaza’s 2.3 million population.
The ongoing siege has pushed Gaza’s infrastructure to the brink of collapse. With no central power for weeks and a limited supply of fuel, hospitals are struggling to maintain emergency generators to operate incubators and other critical life-saving equipment. The U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees, known as UNRWA, has been working tirelessly to keep water pumps and bakeries operational. Last week, U.N. officials reported that hunger was on the rise in the territory.
Notably, on Saturday, crowds of people broke into four U.N. facilities, seizing food supplies. This action was seen as a sign of civil order beginning to erode due to increasing desperation.
In an attempt to alleviate some of the crisis, Israel recently opened two water lines in southern Gaza, according to the Israeli military body responsible for Palestinian civilian affairs. However, the functionality of these water lines could not be independently verified. On a more positive note, communications were restored to most of Gaza on Sunday after more than a day without phone and internet services.
Concurrently, domestic pressure on Israel’s government has been mounting, as they seek to secure the release of 239 hostages taken by Hamas during the Oct. 7 attack. Desperate family members of the Israeli captives met with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Saturday, expressing support for an exchange to secure their loved ones’ release.
The ongoing conflict has raised concerns that violence could potentially spread across the region. Israel and the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah have engaged in daily skirmishes along Israel’s northern border.
In the West Bank, Israeli airstrikes have continued, resulting in casualties, and tensions remain high. As of Sunday, Israeli forces and settlers have killed 115 Palestinians in the West Bank, including 33 children. Half of these casualties occurred during search-and-arrest operations, according to the U.N
