The Israeli military has issued so many evacuation orders in 10 months of onslaught that many Gaza civilians no longer heed them, despairing of finding space or safety in the shrinking “humanitarian” zones, AFP reports.

Over the first three weeks of August, the Israeli army sent out 11 evacuation orders via flyers dropped from planes, text messages or social media. They called on 250,000 Gazans, almost all of whom had been displaced at least once already, to leave their place of shelter.

“The Israeli army will operate with force against terrorist organisations in this area. For your safety, we urge you to evacuate immediately,” read one such order sent out Thursday in the southern province of Khan Younis.

“Every time we arrive somewhere, we get a new evacuation order two days later. This is no way to live,” Haitham Abdelaal told AFP.

Amneh Abu Daqqa, 45, said she saw no point in moving again, so few were the options for safe haven. “To go where?” asked the displaced mother of five.

“I live on the street, literally. I don’t have 500 shekels ($133) to rent a donkey-pulled cart. And I don’t even know where I’d go,” she said.

“There is nowhere safe, there are air strikes everywhere”.

Displaced Palestinians travel on a cart after fleeing the western part of Khan Younis following an evacuation order by the Israeli army in the central part of Khan Younis, in the southern Gaza Strip, August 21, 2024. — Reuters
Displaced Palestinians travel on a cart after fleeing the western part of Khan Younis following an evacuation order by the Israeli army in the central part of Khan Younis, in the southern Gaza Strip, August 21, 2024. — Reuters

Opinion

Editorial

Holding the line
16 Mar, 2026

Holding the line

PAKISTAN’S long battle against polio has recently produced encouraging signs. Data from the national eradication...
Power self-reliance
Updated 16 Mar, 2026

Power self-reliance

PAKISTAN’S transition to domestic sources of electricity is a welcome development for a country that has long been...
Looking for safety
16 Mar, 2026

Looking for safety

AS the Middle East conflict enters its third week, the war’s most enduring victims are not those who wage it....
Battling hate
Updated 15 Mar, 2026

Battling hate

In the current scenario, geopolitical conflict, racial prejudice and religious bigotry all contribute to the threats Muslims face.
TB drugs shortage
15 Mar, 2026

TB drugs shortage

‘CRIMINAL negligence’ is the phrase that jumps to mind when one considers the disturbing consequences of the...
Chinese diplomacy
Updated 14 Mar, 2026

Chinese diplomacy

THERE are signs that China is taking a more active role in trying to resolve the issue of cross-border terrorism...