Mohammad Sultan, 28, said he and his family fled their house in Jabalya in northern Gaza “due to the intense and continuous bombardments in the area.” When he went back to retrieve food, water and blankets, he and other civilians were fired at, he said.
Footage taken by Sultan during his journey shows residents walking along a sandy road, surrounded by rubble and half-destroyed buildings. Some, including children, are on foot, struggling to walk with heavy bags. Others are on bicycles or tuk-tuks.
Drones can be heard buzzing in the background as the bullwhip-like sound of bullets piercing the air trigger screams and attempts to shelter.
The Israeli military on Monday issued fresh evacuation orders in both northern and southern Gaza, where tens of thousands of Palestinians have been sheltering. In northern Gaza, the military said it is “currently operating with great force in the area” and told residents to move to Al Mawasi, a southern region designated as a so-called humanitarian zone that is already crammed with refugees.
A day earlier, Israel’s military said it had encircled Jabalya as it launched a new ground operation there amid efforts by Hamas to “rebuild its operational capabilities in the area.”
Hamas’s military wing, Al-Qassam Brigades, said on Monday it was engaged in “fierce fights” with Israeli forces in northern Gaza.
The renewed fighting comes on the first anniversary of the October 7 attacks by Hamas.
Gunfire at ‘anything that moves’
“We stayed in the house to search for the remaining body parts of Hassan, but now we cannot go out due to the intensity of the shelling and gunfire,” the 58-year-old said, adding the gunfire targets “anything that moves.”
“We try to stay away from the windows, so they won’t shoot at us,” she said.
Residents say the fighting in Jabalya has been some of the most intense in recent days.
Mohammad Ibrahim, a resident of the city who decided to stay in his home with his two sons, said the explosions outside his house were so intense they “shook” his body.
From his window, Ibrahim said he could see smoke billowing between abandoned apartment buildings. “Anyone who wants to leave the north to Gaza wants death,” he said.
Jabalya has been targeted several times during the war, and like many other parts of Gaza, its residents say they don’t know where to go for shelter.
“We are living in the Stone Age,” Ibrahim said. “There is no conscience, no humanity, no human rights.”
