In the evacuation order issued on Friday, the Israeli army instructed residents in the Bureij refugee camp and surrounding areas to "leave immediately for their own security" and head towards Deir al-Balah city further south.
"People in Gaza are people. They are not pieces on a checkerboard -- many have already been displaced several times," Thomas White, Gaza director for the UN's agency for Palestinian refugees, UNRWA, wrote on social media.
"The Israeli army just orders people to move into areas where there are ongoing air strikes. No place is safe, nowhere to go."
After the evacuation order, thousands of Palestinians fled the central Gaza Strip to the south on Friday.
UNRWA tweeted that the latest order would affect more than 150,000 people.
An estimated 1.9 million have been displaced by the war, according to the UN.
Fighting began on October 7 when Hamas gunmen broke through Gaza's militarised border and killed around 1,140 people in Israel, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on Israeli figures.
Palestinian militants also abducted around 250 people during the attack, according to Israeli figures.
Vowing to destroy Hamas, Israel launched a relentless bombardment and ground invasion of Gaza, where 20,057 people have been killed, according to the latest toll from the territory's Hamas government.
Israel studies Egypt-sponsored peace proposal as PM vows to 'fight on' in Gaza
Washington DC (UPI) Dec 25, 2023 -
Israel on Monday is examining an Egyptian proposal for a far-reaching peace plan seeking a long-term settlement to the war in Gaza even as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed to intensify the fighting.
Hebrew language news sources cited by the Times of Israel indicated Israeli officials have received the Egyptian proposal and are studying it. Some of the unnamed officials said they are not rejecting the initial draft out-of-hand and expressed some hope it could lead to further negotiations.
The proposal comes after Netanyahu on Sunday issued a statement declaring Israel is intensifying the war against Hamas militants in Gaza Strip and vowed to "fight until absolute victory" over the enclave's Palestinian rulers.
"This will take time, but we are united -- the soldiers, the people and the government. We are united and determined to fight until the end," the prime minister said in a video statement.
"The war has a price, a very heavy price in the lives of our heroic soldiers, and we will do everything to safeguard the lives of our soldiers," he said. "However, there is one thing we will not do: We will not stop until we achieve victory."
Gaza health officials said 250 Palestinians died and 500 more were injured in fighting on Sunday, making it one of the deadliest single days since the start of the conflict on Oct. 7. Overall, more than 20,600 Palestinians have died in the war, they said.
The Egyptian peace plan is being brokered by Qatar and includes three stages, according to the Arabic newspaper Asharq Al Awsat. The first stage would be an immediate humanitarian truce in which Hamas would release all civilian captives in exchange for Palestinian prisoners, followed by a "massive introduction of aid" into the Gaza Strip and the redeployment of Israeli forces away from residential communities.
Subsequent stages would reportedly include Egyptian-sponsored talks between rival Palestinian factions Hamas and the Palestinian Authority, dominated by the Fatah faction. A reconciliation between the groups could pave the way for a new Palestinian government for both the West Bank and Gaza.
The final phase would encompass a comprehensive cease-fire, return of all prisoners and Israeli withdrawal from cities in the northern Gaza Strip, after which displaced Gazans could return to their homes.
Health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza says Israel strike kills 70 in refugee camp
Gaza Strip, Palestinian Territories (AFP) Dec 24, 2023 -
The health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza said at least 70 people have been killed in an Israeli air strike that late Sunday hit a number of houses in a refugee camp.
The ministry said the strike destroyed the houses in Al-Maghazi camp in the centre of the Palestinian territory. AFP was unable to independently verify the toll.
Ministry spokesman Ashraf al-Qudra said "the number of martyrs from the Al-Maghazi massacre has risen to 70 so far".
Contacted by AFP, the Israeli army said it was "checking" the report.
Earlier Qudra said the strike destroyed a "residential block" and that the "toll is likely to rise" given the large number of families residing there.
In a separate incident, the ministry said 10 members of one family were killed in an Israeli strike on their house in the Jabalia camp in northern Gaza. AFP was unable to verify the toll independently.
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