As the situation worsens in the southern Gaza City of Khan Yunis, an increasing number of Palestinians are fleeing towards Rafah, which is closer to the Egyptian border. Desperate and fearing for their lives, they gathered whatever possessions they could carry on their journey to safety.

Telegram Writer

Israeli troops have issued evacuation orders for residents of an area encompassing Nasser Hospital and two smaller medical facilities.

Faced with ongoing Israeli strikes, approximately 1.5 million people, which constitutes two-thirds of Gaza’s population, have sought refuge in overcrowded shelters and tent camps situated in and around Rafah.

Alas, safety remains an elusive concept as the relentless Israeli offensive has inflicted profound devastation upon the Northern Territory, with Israel proclaiming to have effectively dismantled Hamas.

In Rafah, at the southern tip of the narrow Gaza Strip, almost a million people have already taken shelter in a town of 300,000.

According to reports from the Health Ministry in Gaza, the number of deaths has surpassed 26,000 since October 7.

Gaza’s population has been dramatically uprooted, with a staggering 1.7 million individuals forced to flee their homes, particularly from the ravaged northern areas.

On Friday, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) issued an order demanding Israel take immediate action to prevent further loss of life, destruction, and potential acts of genocide within the besieged territory.

The ICJ also instructed Israel to submit a report within a month from the date of the ruling, detailing their compliance with these measures, leading to heightened international monitoring of their military operations.

The current state of affairs remains extremely grave, inducing apprehension regarding the prospects for displaced individuals returning to their severely devastated neighbourhoods.

A child looks through a fence as displaced Palestinians, who fled their houses due to Israeli strikes, shelter at a tent camp in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip, January 18.  – Reuters/Ibraheem Abu Mustafa

A boy reacts as Palestinians wait to receive food amid shortages of food supplies, in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip, January 17.  – Reuters/Mohammed Salem

Mourners react next to the bodies of Palestinians killed in an Israeli strike in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip, January 18.  – Reuters/Ibraheem Abu Mustafa