Israeli tanks re-entered the greater Khan Younis area, following evacuation orders for some districts cited as locations of militant attacks. Gaza medics reported at least 70 Palestinians were killed by Israeli fire on Monday.
The fatalities occurred in Bani Suhaila and other towns on the eastern side of Khan Younis, with both tank and aerial bombardments. Residents reported that tanks advanced over two kilometers into Bani Suhaila, causing them to flee under fire. "It is like doomsday," said one resident, Abu Khaled, via chat app. "People are fleeing under fire, many are dead and wounded on the roads."
The Gaza health ministry confirmed the dead included several women and children, with at least 200 others wounded. The ministry does not differentiate between militants and civilians in its death tolls. The Israeli military stated that the evacuation orders were based on intelligence about militants launching rockets from these areas and Hamas regrouping efforts.
"Since this morning, the IAF and IDF artillery forces have struck more than 30 terror infrastructure sites in Khan Younis, including the area from which a projectile was launched toward Nirim in southern Israel earlier today," said the military.
Approximately 400,000 people resided in the targeted areas, with dozens of families starting to evacuate without sufficient warning before Israeli strikes began. Some families fled on donkey carts, others on foot, carrying personal belongings.
The Palestinian Red Crescent Society reported that two clinics in eastern Khan Younis ceased operations due to the offensive. Outside the morgue at Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis, people gathered to bid farewell to their dead relatives.
"We are tired, we are tired in Gaza, every day our children are martyred, every day, every moment," said Ahmed Sammour, who lost several relatives in the bombings. "No one told us to evacuate. They brought four floors crashing down on civilians," he added.
In nearby Deir Al-Balah, where many Palestinians are sheltering, an Israeli airstrike hit a tent used by journalists at Al-Aqsa Hospital, killing one and injuring two others, according to the Hamas-run Gaza government media office. This brought the number of Palestinian journalists killed during the Israeli offensive to 163.
Earlier on Monday, the Israeli military issued new evacuation orders due to renewed militant attacks, including rockets launched from eastern Khan Younis. Health institutions were not included in the evacuation orders, according to Palestinians.
The military is adjusting the boundaries of a humanitarian zone in coastal Al-Mawasi, west of Khan Younis, to distance civilians from combat areas. Gaza Civil Emergency Services noted that Israel reduced the size of humanitarian-designated areas in southern and central regions, sheltering 1.7 million people, from 65 sq km to 48 sq km.
The Palestinians, the UN, and international relief agencies have declared there is no safe place left in Gaza. Health officials at Nasser Hospital urged residents to donate blood due to the high number of casualties.
"A family, including children, were all torn to pieces while they were sleeping," said a man arriving at the hospital with bodies.
Israel aims to eradicate Hamas following a cross-border assault on October 7, 2023, which resulted in 1,200 Israeli deaths and over 250 hostages taken, according to Israeli figures. Since then, Gaza health authorities reported at least 39,006 Palestinian deaths from Israel's retaliatory offensive.
A ceasefire effort led by Qatar and Egypt, with US backing, has failed due to disagreements over terms between the combatants, each blaming the other for the impasse.