Dozens of bodies are scattered in the alleys and inside the destroyed houses in Gaza City

 

al Jazeera:

Israel war on Gaza: ‘Tragic scenes’ in Gaza City’s industrial area

By Virginia Pietromarchi

Published On 12 Jul 202412 Jul 2024

• Gaza’s Civil Defence has said that dozens of bodies are scattered in the alleys and inside the destroyed houses in the industrial area of Gaza City after the Israeli troop withdrawal.
• At least eight people have been killed in Gaza’s southern city of Rafah, with the bodies transferred to the Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis.
• At least four more people have been killed in the Nuseirat refugee camp, central Gaza.
• Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu insists that he backs the Gaza ceasefire framework, but accused Hamas of making demands that contradict it while also reiterating that the fighting will not stop until Hamas is defeated.
• At least 38,345 people have been killed and 88,295 wounded in Israel’s war on Gaza

Footage shows destruction in western Gaza City

Video published by the Palestinian Information Center has documented the widespread destruction left behind by Israeli troops in the western neighbourhoods of Gaza City, in the northern Strip.

The video comes after the withdrawal of the Israeli forces from the area, which our correspondent says is believed to be a tactical move before redeployment.

Entire blocks appeared to be levelled, while other buildings were partially destroyed, and streets are piled high with rubble on both sides.

[Caption translation: Following the withdrawal of the occupation army, scenes of destruction in areas west of Gaza City.]

Despite war, Palestinians are determined to remain in the Gaza Strip

Mansour Shouman, a Canadian-Palestinian citizen journalist who has reported from Gaza during the early stages of the war, has described the feeling on the ground in the enclave.

“Palestinians do not want to leave their homes, not only because there’s no place to go, but because for them, it’s now part of their creed, of their daily narrative and part of their belief that they do not want a repeat of 1948 and of 1967,” Shouman told Al Jazeera.

He was referring to two wars that saw the exodus of hundreds of thousands of people from Palestine.

“They believe that they are the ones who own the land historically and that they are on the right side of this genocide,” Shouman said. “They believe that at the end [of the war], they will be victorious.”

Video Duration 03 minutes 22 seconds03:22

Gaza war: 60 bodies recovered in Shujayea after Israeli ground assault

• Gaza’s displaced people directed to ‘safe’ beach with no infrastructure: Oxfam

  As civilians in Gaza keep being evacuated from the north to the south, they are directed by the Israeli army towards the al-Mawasi area, a declared safe zone. But the area is nothing more than a sandy strip of land for people to enjoy the summer with no infrastructure at all, says Fidaa al-Araj, a global gender adviser with British charity Oxfam.

  “Before the war started, al-Mawasi was just a strip of land on the beach, not a residential area … there are no infrastructure or any buildings,” al-Araj told Al Jazeera from the al-Mawasi area.

  Tens of thousands of people are living crammed in improvised shelters with sheets of plastic or blankets. The area is so crowded that up to four rows of internally displaced people’s tents reach the water, she said.

  “There is no water to drink, no easy routes for transportation, no electricity or supply lines for power – it’s very difficult,” she added.

  On top of the poor life conditions, humanitarian agencies have been questioning the term “safe” as the area has been targeted repeatedly by the Israeli army.

  In late May, the Israeli army killed at least 21 Palestinians there in an air strike. And in June, it attacked there again, killing at least 25 people and injuring 50 others.
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