Smoke rises following an Israeli airstrike in Rafah, Gaza Strip, Saturday, Oct. 14, 2023.
Hatem Ali/AP
Hatem Ali/AP
Israeli Defense Forces said Sunday they were “in formation” to strike Gaza City, as troops massed on the border ready for an apparent ground invasion.
Israeli military spokesperson Lt. Col. Jonathan Conricus said that northern Gaza will be the center of Israel’s next counterattack in an effort to strike Hamas leaders.
“Gaza City is where the focus and the hub of Hamas activities are, that is where most of the commanders are, most of their infrastructure and their ability to continue to operate,” Conricus said Saturday night.
He added that troops are “in formation” surrounding the Gaza Strip for the next stage of operations.
The Israeli military said on Sunday it would continue to allow Gazans to evacuate south and hundreds of thousands had already moved. On Friday, 1.1 million people living in the north of Gaza were told to to evacuate within 24 hours.
The IDF on Sunday again urged Gaza residents to move from the northern part of Gaza to the south and said that it would not carry out any operations along the evacuation route from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. local time.
“Be assured, Hamas leaders have already ensured their safety and that of their families,” the IDF said in its statement.
Medics in Gaza warned on Sunday that thousands could die if hospitals run out of fuel and basic supplies. Water and electricity are scarce.
Israeli strikes on the Gaza Strip have killed at least 2,329 Palestinians, with more than 9,714 wounded. One million people had reportedly left their homes.
The IDF has said that the number of confirmed Israeli hostages being held in Gaza is 126. Hamas has previously claimed that 13 hostages have been killed within Gaza by Israeli airstrikes. It said there were foreigners among those who died, without specifying their nationalities.
An Israeli soldier runs in front of a tank with an Israeli flag on the top in a staging area near the Israeli border with Lebanon, on Sunday, Oct. 15, 2023.
Petros Giannakouris/AP
Petros Giannakouris/AP
The Israeli military also said on Sunday that at least 286 of its soldiers have been killed in the past week.
In addition, at least 53 people have been reported killed in the West Bank, with more than 1,100 wounded.
Israel has launched a massive response to the deadly attack launched on Oct. 7 by Hamas militants that left more than 1,300 people dead in southern Israel, including 29 U.S. citizens.
NPR News contacted Gaza resident Haneen Okal on Saturday, who was stuck at the Rafeh gate in the South of Gaza.
“Lots of people are waiting here in front of the Palestinian gate. They all are waiting to get out of here, but the Palestinians are not here to open the gate and the Egyptians are not there yet too from the Egyptian side. So we are all waiting, what’s going to happen? Nobody has any information.” she said.
In addition, one person was killed and three others wounded in a northern Israeli village near Lebanon, where strikes have been exchanged across the border.