GAZA, (PIC)
“We are steadfast and will not leave our land” with these words, many Palestinian citizens in northern Gaza expressed their determination amidst a new wave of Israeli atrocities and aggression, as well as attempts at forced displacement.
A reporter from the Palestinian Information Center reported that since Saturday afternoon until early Sunday morning, the Israeli occupation forces have launched more than 80 airstrikes on homes, gatherings, agricultural lands, and streets in the eastern part of Jabalia camp and northwestern Beit Lahia in northern Gaza. This resulted in dozens of martyrs and injuries, including journalist Hassan Hamad, who was targeted by the occupation forces while documenting their aggression.
The report mentioned a state of displacement from some neighborhoods in Beit Lahia and Jabalia to other areas within the region due to the heavy Israeli shelling and the beginning of an Israeli incursion into the eastern edges of Jabalia and northwestern Beit Lahia.
We will not leave Northern Gaza
Mohammad Al-Masri told our reporter, “The occupation wants to empty our cities, but it will not succeed. What the occupation has failed to do over the years will not succeed today. We may move from this neighborhood to that one, but we will not leave northern Gaza, and we will remain here even if we become martyrs.”
He added that the situation is difficult, as Israeli bombardment targets homes, neighborhoods, and vehicles, with drones firing in all directions.
Journalist Imad Zaqout wrote on his account on X (formerly Twitter): “The occupation army is calling us to evacuate the north, threatening us with death and deceiving us that meat and silk are in the south!” He continued: “We have endured hunger for a whole year and death for years in a place of pain. The Muwasi area is not a paradise, and death does not differentiate between south and north. Killing is here and there, and the cold is coming here and there, as well as hunger accompanying people everywhere, if we are to die, we will die in our north and will not follow the illusions and lies of the occupation.”
Map of forced evacuation
According to the Euro-Med Human Rights Monitor, the occupation forces intensified their violent bombardment of areas in Gaza City and northern Gaza, coinciding with the start of a ground invasion and the issuance of a new map for the forced evacuation of remaining residents in northern Gaza, announcing the beginning of a new phase of war.
The Monitor documented that from 3 PM Saturday October 5, until the early hours of Sunday, the occupation army launched more than 70 airstrikes amidst intense artillery bombardment on Jabalia, its camp, Beit Lahia, and the northwestern part of Gaza City.
Many homes, gatherings, a water distribution vehicle, and a shelter filled with displaced persons were targeted, leading to dozens of deaths and injuries. Additionally, many citizens were besieged due to the bombardment and the sudden incursion of occupation forces.
Third incursion
It was noted that the occupation forces began to advance late Saturday evening in the northwestern outskirts of Gaza City and east Jabalia, amidst intense artillery fire, before announcing on Sunday morning that they had tightened the siege on Jabalia, which they had previously invaded multiple times, committing dozens of atrocities there and destroying most of its buildings and homes.
Local sources confirmed to our reporter that clashes erupted east of Jabalia between resistance forces and occupation troops attempting to advance in the area amidst heavy shelling.
This is the third time that occupation forces have invaded Jabalia since the onset of the Israeli extermination war against Gaza on October 7, with fierce resistance met by the commission of atrocities against civilians and the destruction of homes and what remains of infrastructure.
A new phase of war
On Sunday morning, the occupation forces issued several new maps, one of which announced the start of a new phase of war, renaming residential blocks in Gaza and northern Gaza, and ordering the remaining residents in those areas to evacuate via Al-Rasheed and Salah Al-Din streets towards what they described as a humanitarian area in the southwestern Gaza Strip, which they announced had been slightly expanded according to one of the maps.
Several weeks ago, Israeli media reported on what is called the “Generals’ Plan,” which calls for the evacuation of the residents of Gaza City and its northern areas and their relocation to southern Gaza. The occupation army stated that it is studying this plan, which citizens are determined to thwart, just as they successfully hindered the initial displacement plan.
The Al-Hudhud network quoted the Israeli army radio as claiming that there is no connection between the ground military operation that began in Jabalia and the implementation of the “Generals’ Plan” or the “Island Plan,” claiming it is purely a military operation.
Despite this, the Euro-Med Human Rights Monitor expressed concern that the new map may be a prelude to Israel’s attempt to execute the “Generals’ Plan,” which calls for the complete evacuation of the Gaza and northern Gaza governorates and transforming them into a military zone. This raises systematic concerns that the occupation army has been working on since July, targeting shelters and residential gatherings with bombardments, affecting most of the shelters set up in schools to eliminate the limited living opportunities in the region.
We will continue to resist
Um Ibrahim, who resides in a shelter in Jabalia camp, said, “We know that the occupation’s goal is to kill and destroy and to force us to evacuate Gaza, but this will not happen. We will continue to stand firm in our land and homes and thwart the occupation’s plans.”
On October 13, 2023, the occupation forces issued the first order for the mass displacement of residents in Gaza and its northern areas, demanding their relocation to southern Gaza. This order was repeated several times later amidst the commission of bloody massacres, but hundreds of thousands of residents refused to comply and continued their resistance, forcing them to move from one area to another within northern Gaza.
