DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — Israel faced pressure from some of its closest allies Wednesday over the plight of civilians in Gaza, where thousands streamed on foot out of the enclave’s north because of dwindling food and water and increased fighting in urban areas.
Over 70% of Gaza’s population of 2.3 million have already left their homes, but the number making their way south has quickened recently as Israeli troops battle Hamas militants inside Gaza City and the humanitarian situation grows increasingly dire.
The Group of Seven wealthy industrial nations announced a unified stance on the Israel-Hamas war after intensive meetings in Tokyo, condemning Hamas and supporting Israel’s right to self-defense. But the group also called Wednesday for the “unimpeded” delivery of food, water, medicine and fuel, and for “humanitarian pauses” in the fighting.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has left open the possibility of small pauses to deliver humanitarian aid, but has ruled out a broader cease-fire unless all hostages are freed.
There is no end in sight to the war triggered by Hamas’ deadly Oct. 7 assault inside Israel.
Israel has said the battle to end Hamas’ rule and crush its military capabilities will be long and difficult, and that it will maintain some form of control over the coastal enclave indefinitely — though how it will achieve that remains unclear.
Support for the war remains strong inside Israel, where the focus has been on the fate of the more than 240 hostages taken by Hamas and other militant groups.
THE ROAD OUT OF THE NORTH
About 15,000 people fled northern Gaza on Tuesday — triple the number that left Monday — according to the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.
On Wednesday, thousands more made their way down Salah al-Din Street, Gaza’s main north-south highway, during a daily window set by Israel, now extended to five hours.
Families filled the road, almost all on foot, with men and women carrying young children or pushing the elderly on makeshift carts. Most had only a few belongings in backpacks. A few families rode on donkey carts, holding white flags as they approached Israeli tanks. The U.N. said some reported people arrested as they crossed Israeli checkpoints.
“We didn’t have food or drinking water … They struck the bakeries. There is no life in Gaza,” said Abeer Akila, who left her home in Gaza City with her family and neighbors after heavy bombardment overnight.
Residents reported loud explosions overnight into Wednesday across Gaza City and in the adjacent Shati refugee camp, which houses Palestinian families who fled from or were driven out of what is now Israel during the 1948 war surrounding its establishment.
The Israeli army’s chief spokesperson, Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari, said late Tuesday that ground forces had reached “the depths of Gaza City.” The army said Wednesday that it killed one of Hamas’ leading developers of rockets and other weapons, without saying where he was killed.
Hamas has denied that Israeli troops have made any significant gains or entered Gaza City. It was not possible to independently confirm battlefield claims from either side.
Israel is focusing its operations on the city, which was home to some 650,000 people before the war and where the military says Hamas has its central command and a labyrinth of tunnels.
Hundreds of thousands of Palestinians have heeded Israeli orders in recent weeks to flee the north. But tens of thousands remain, many sheltering at hospitals or U.N. schools.
