The Israeli military warned on Friday it will operate with “unprecedented force” in Gaza City, urging residents to flee southwards while announcing the closure of a temporary evacuation route opened 48 hours earlier.
Israel’s bid to capture Gaza City has sparked international outrage, with the territory already devastated by nearly two years of war and gripped by a UN-declared famine.
It comes ahead of a planned move by several Western countries, including France and Britain, to recognise a Palestinian state this week at a UN summit.
The United Nations estimated at the end of August that about one million people were living in Gaza City and its surroundings. Israel says hundreds of thousands of them have fled the Gaza Strip’s largest city.
In a post on X addressing residents of Gaza City, the military’s Arabic-language spokesman, Avichay Adraee, said: “From this moment, Salah al-Din Road is closed for southbound travel. The forces will continue to operate with unprecedented force against Hamas and other terrorist organisations.”
He added the only possible route south was via Al-Rashid street and urged residents to “take this opportunity and join the hundreds of thousands of city residents who have moved south to the humanitarian area”.
Israel on Wednesday announced a “temporary” new route for residents to flee Gaza City, after it launched an intense ground offensive and massive bombardment of the Palestinian territory’s main city after nearly two years of devastating war.
