Israeli army orders 1 million Gazans south ahead of planned invasion

As the Israeli army prepares to invade Gaza, threatening residents to “go south,” Gazans are finding they have nowhere to go.

The Israeli army (IDF), preparing to invade Gaza City, plans to forcibly displace another 1 million Palestinians who are struggling to survive in the region.

With the threat of launching large-scale attacks on Gaza City, the Israeli army demanded that all 1 million Palestinians in the area “urgently” migrate south. The bombardments were intensified before families could evacuate.

Army Spokesperson Avichay Adraee, in a message posted on his X account, threatened that they would launch large-scale attacks on Gaza City.

Threatening that it was “extremely dangerous” to remain in Gaza City, Adraee demanded that the 1 million Palestinians in the region “urgently” migrate toward the Al-Mawasi area in the south.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also stated yesterday that they were preparing for ground attacks on Gaza City and asked Palestinians in the region to migrate south.

As the IDF intensifies its operations, Palestinians, many of whom have been displaced multiple times, report that they are struggling to find space even in so-called “safe zones.” Speaking to the Israeli newspaper Haaretz, residents said: “Some people who went south have returned. There is no room for anyone anymore. Even the streets won’t accept us.”

At the end of August, the IDF’s Arabic-speaking spokesperson called on all 1.2 million Palestinians in Gaza to move to so-called “safe zones” further south; an estimated 100,000 people have left the city since then. Official evacuation orders were issued to some neighborhoods in the Gaza Strip via airdropped leaflets or phone calls. While the evacuation orders were being issued, the bombardments continued.

Speaking to Haaretz, 27-year-old Osama Abdul Hadi described the situation: “Ambulance vehicles are targeted while responding to cases. Civil defense members are terrorized while trying to extinguish fires—like the ambulance that burned after an airstrike last week. As they worked, drones flew over their heads, frightening them. They fled, and when the drones moved away, we called them back from our house windows. But as soon as they returned, the drones came back. The Israeli army is playing with them (the drones), using them for fun.”

Since March alone, more than 856,000 displacement movements have been recorded by the United Nations across Gaza—with many people being displaced multiple times. According to a UN report, nearly 1.9 million people, constituting more than 90% of Gaza’s population, have been displaced at least once.