Chaos reigns as Gazans flee

More than a million people have fled their homes in Gaza, leaving behind scenes of chaos and despair, as Israel continues to pummel the Hamas-ruled enclave and gather troops in preparation for a full-fledged ground invasion.
Israel declared war on the Islamist group a day after waves of its fighters surged through the heavily fortified border on 7 October, killing over 1,400 people, most of whom were civilians.

Following the bloodiest attack in its history, Israel launched a continuous bombing campaign against the Gaza Strip, flattening neighborhoods and killing at least 2,670 people, mostly civilians.

With an Israeli order to relocate to the south of the Gaza Strip, residents in the northern enclave have fled to seek refuge wherever they can, including on the streets and in UN-run schools.

Palestinians have become accustomed to lugging whatever goods they can in bags, or crammed onto three-wheeled motorbikes, dilapidated vehicles, trucks, and even donkey carts.

"No electricity, no water, no internet. I feel like I'm losing my humanity," said Mona Abdel Hamid, 55, who fled Gaza City to Rafah in the south of the enclave, and is having to stay with strangers.

US President Joe Biden said in an interview with the CBS news program 60 Minutes that while invading and "taking out the extremists" was needed, any move by Israel to occupy Gaza would be a "big mistake." (See related story)

'Brink of the abyss'

Israel, which has been grieving and is enraged, has gathered its forces outside the 2.4-million person long blockaded enclave in anticipation of what the army has described as a land, air, and sea attack involving a "significant ground operation."

"We are at the beginning of intense or enhanced military operations in Gaza City," the spokesperson for the Israeli Defense Forces, Jonathan Conricus, said.

"It would be unsafe for civilians to stay there," he added.

Hamas-backer Iran and Lebanon's Hezbollah, which is also supported by Tehran, have warned that an invasion of Gaza would be met with a response.

"No one can guarantee the control of the situation and the non-expansion of the conflicts" if Israel sends its soldiers into Gaza, said Iran's Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian.

UN chief Antonio Guterres has warned that the entire region was "on the verge of the abyss."

Israel's Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said his country has "no interest in a war in the north, we don't want to escalate the situation."

The United States, which has given unequivocal backing to Israel, has sent two aircraft carriers to the eastern Mediterranean as a deterrent.

The White House has voiced fears at the prospect of Iran becoming "directly engaged" after Tehran praised the Hamas attack but insisted it was not involved.

Biden, asked in the 60 Minutes interview whether US troops might join the war, said: "I don't think that's necessary."

"Israel has one of the finest fighting forces… I guarantee we're gonna provide them everything they need," he added.

Appeal to China

The United States has also appealed to China to use its influence in the region to ease tensions.

The UN said Monday that 47 entire families, totaling around 500 people, have been killed in Israel's bombing campaign.

Foreign governments and aid agencies, including the UN and Red Cross, have repeatedly criticized Israel's evacuation order.

The UN agency supporting Palestinian refugees said Sunday that some one million Palestinians had been displaced in the first week of the conflict — but the number was likely to be higher.

In Gaza, hospitals are being overwhelmed by the increasing numbers of dead and injured, with officials saying Sunday that some 9,600 people have been wounded.

Israeli energy minister Israel Katz on Sunday said that water supplies to southern Gaza had been switched back on. But power outages threaten to cripple life-support systems, from seawater desalination plants to food refrigeration and hospital incubators.

Even everyday functions — from going to the toilet, showering and washing clothes — are almost impossible, locals said. Gazans are effectively trapped, with Israeli-controlled crossings closed and Egypt also having shut the Rafah border in the south.

With AFP