Gaza, Mar 26 (V7N) – Israeli airstrikes across the Gaza Strip killed at least 23 Palestinians on Tuesday, according to local health officials, as the Israeli military expanded evacuation orders to tens of thousands of residents in the enclave.
 
The military resumed its campaign against Hamas last week, breaking a two-month ceasefire. Since then, nearly 700 people, mostly women and children, have been killed, Palestinian health officials report.
 
The majority of Gaza's 2.3 million residents have been displaced multiple times over the past 18 months of conflict. They are now facing severe shortages of food and water after Israel suspended aid deliveries earlier this month.
 
On Tuesday, the Israeli army ordered the evacuation of all northern border towns, including Jabalia, Beit Lahiya, Beit Hanoun, and Shejaia in Gaza City, along with areas in Khan Younis and Rafah in the south. The military cited rocket fire from the region as the reason for the evacuation orders.
 
"For your safety, you must move immediately south to known shelters," the military said in the evacuation orders for residents of Jabalia, the largest refugee camp in Gaza.
 
However, both Palestinian and United Nations officials have stated that there are no safe areas left in the Gaza Strip.
 
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu confirmed that the renewed offensive is intended to pressure Hamas to release the 59 hostages still being held in Gaza, 24 of whom are believed to be alive.
 
Hamas, which accuses Israel of abandoning the January 19 ceasefire deal, has said it is cooperating with efforts mediated by Qatar, Egypt, and the U.S. to restore calm. However, according to some Hamas sources, no breakthroughs have been achieved.
 
The latest violence in the decades-long Israeli-Palestinian conflict began on October 7, 2023, when Hamas militants attacked Israel, killing 1,200 people and taking about 250 hostages. Israel's subsequent military assault on Gaza has resulted in over 50,000 Palestinian deaths, according to local health officials.
 
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