Israel Warns UN to Evacuate the Northern Gaza Strip Within 24 Hours
The Israeli Ministry of Defense and the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) have issued an urgent warning to the United Nations, Axios reported.
Just before midnight, the UN was notified to evacuate its staff and inform Palestinians living north of Wadi Gaza to move to the southern part of the Gaza Strip within the next 24 hours. The message was confirmed by UN spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric and another source with direct knowledge of the situation.
More than 1 million Palestinians reside in the area north of Wadi Gaza. The sudden warning from the Israeli authorities could be a precursor to an imminent ground operation by the IDF.
According to sources who spoke to Axios, the IDF’s rationale behind the urgent notification is to minimize civilian casualties during their military operations.
According to IDF, Hamas deliberately hides military targets in residential buildings and civilian areas. Hamas is using children as human shields. Hamas has been using a school—in close proximity to civilian buildings including a hospital—to hide a terror tunnel.
The Israeli military has been carrying out heavy airstrikes in Gaza since Hamas terrorists attacked Israel last Saturday. A “complete siege” has also been imposed on the enclave, home to more than 2 million Palestinians.
Stéphane Dujarric, the UN spokesperson, told Axios, “Today, just before midnight local time, team leaders of the UN Office of the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs and the Department of Safety and Security in Gaza were informed by their liaison officers in the Israeli military that the entire population of Gaza north of Wadi Gaza should relocate to southern Gaza within the next 24 hours.”
Dujarric continued, “This amounts to approximately 1.1 million people. The same order applied to all UN staff and those sheltered in UN facilities – including schools, health centers, and clinics.”
“The United Nations considers it impossible for such a movement to take place without devastating humanitarian consequences,” Dujarric added. He also strongly appealed for the order to be rescinded, warning that it could transform an already tragic situation into a calamitous one.”
The following is the IDF announcement sent to civilians of Gaza City:
The IDF calls for the evacuation of all civilians of Gaza City from their
Source: The Gateway Pundit
