Israeli forces raid north Gaza schools and march displaced people out at gunpoint
The Israeli military is ramping up its efforts to forcibly expel Palestinians from northern Gaza, with soldiers systematically raiding schools in the region and marching out the displaced people sheltering there at gunpoint.
According to witnesses, Israeli forces are separating men from their families and instructing women and children to flee southward.
Since dawn on Monday, 44 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces in the north of the Strip, which has been subjected to a two-week-long siege and massive ground operation, blocking aid and food access to the region.
At least 10 people were killed and 30 others wounded in an Israeli attack on Jabalia Preparatory School in Al-Fawqa area, which was functioning as an Unrwa shelter for displaced people, Palestinian news agency Wafa reported.
Another seven Palestinians were killed and dozens more wounded in an Israeli attack on the camp’s besieged Unrwa-affiliated Kreizm school, where displaced people were also sheltering.
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Eyewitnesses told Wafa that people in Kreizm school were targeted with artillery shelling after they had gathered in preparation to flee, under Israeli expulsion orders.
Meanwhile, Israeli forces killed six people, including children, and wounded others as they were attempting to fill drinking water in the Jabalia town. Elsewhere, an Israeli strike killed four people near al-Yaman al-Saeed hospital.
'The situation is catastrophic'
A video from Israel’s state news broadcaster showed crowds of people expelled from the besieged Jabalia refugee camp attempting to cross a checkpoint.
Journalist Sulaiman Ahmed shared the footage and images of the checkpoint, reporting that people not moving toward it are being targeted with "drone and artillery fire".
"Even those following orders are being attacked. A massacre is unfolding in northern Gaza, with bodies in the streets."
Palestinian journalist Hossam Shabat reported that Israeli forces attacked a school in Jabalia, forcing out the people sheltering there.
"Then they lined them up and shot anyone who dared to move. Any male over the age of 16 is being detained, tortured and investigated," Shabat said in a post on X.
"Many people who are being lined up are sick individuals, such as amputees, cancer patients, and young kids who are being asked to stand in line for hours. The situation is catastrophic."
Elsewhere in the region, nine people were killed and dozens others wounded in an Israeli strike targeting a residential home belonging to the Maqat family, in the north of Gaza City.
In Beit Hanoun, three people were killed and others wounded when Israeli forces targeted the Ghazi al-Shawa school where displaced people were sheltering.
Forced to live in toilets
The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (Unrwa) Chief Phillipe Lazzarini reported that the already dire humanitarian situation in northern Gaza is rapidly deteriorating amid Israel's continued barring of aid.
Israeli forces have blocked the entry of food or aid of any kind into northern Gaza since 1 October, significantly increasing the risk of famine for residents.
Lazzarini said that the agency's remaining shelters in the region are facing dangerous overcrowding, with some displaced people forced to "live in toilets".
"According to reports, people attempting to flee are getting killed, their bodies left on the street. Missions to rescue people from under the rubble are also being denied," he said in a post on X.
"Denying & weaponizing humanitarian assistance to achieve military purposes is a sign of how low the moral compass is."
According to the Palestinian health ministry, the three remaining partially functioning hospitals in the area, the Indonesian, Al-Awda and Kamal Adwan hospitals are under Israeli siege.
'A massacre is unfolding in northern Gaza, with bodies in the streets'
- Sulaiman Ahmed, journalist
The ministry reported that the hospitals have run out of fuel and medical supplies.
According to Medecins San Frontieres (MSF), over 350 patients, including pregnant women and patients recovering from surgeries, are thought to be trapped inside the facilities.
The NGO said that the patients require constant medical treatment and cannot be evacuated.
On 19 October, the director of Kamal Adwan Hospital, Hossam Abu Safia said in a statement that many of the wounded from an assault on Beit Lahiya, who the hospital was treating, had died due to a severe lack of resources, medical supplies and specialised personnel at the facility.
The hospital also announced that it had run out of shrouds used to cover dead bodies.
A day later the hospital itself came under attack, with Israeli strikes damaging its water tanks and electricity grid.
On Saturday, Beit Lahia faced heavy bombardment by Israeli forces, resulting in the deaths of at least 87 Palestinians, according to the Ministry of Health. Search efforts are ongoing to locate those still missing under the rubble.
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