• Over 40 more Palestinians killed; more than 20 buildings destroyed
• Netanyahu says getting rid of Hamas key to deal on ending war

GAZA CITY: Israeli air strikes hit two UN schools sheltering displaced Palestinians in Gaza City with more than 40 people killed since dawn on Saturday throughout the war-battered Strip, Al Jazeera reported.

Gaza’s Government Media Office says more than 1.3 million Palestinians, including 350,000 children, remain in Gaza City and the north, despite Israel’s relentless bombardment and forced evacuation orders.

Israeli forces fired artillery shells and smoke bombs at the al-Nafaq and Yarmouk areas.

In August, Israel announced plans for a military takeover and occupation of the largest city in the enclave, where about 1.3 million Palestinians are currently sheltering in fear and without water, food and medicine.

Three Israeli air strikes targeted the public prosecution building, southwest of Gaza City, Al Jazeera reported.

Israeli forces destroyed one residential tower, three shelters and more than 20 buildings since the morning.

Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu alleged on Saturday that getting rid of Hamas chiefs living in Qatar would remove the main obstacle to releasing all prisoners and ending the war in Gaza. Israel on Tuesday targeted the Hamas leadership in Doha.

The Israeli military also said on Saturday that more than 250,000 people had fled Gaza City since it began intensifying operations there, as Palestinian officials reported many had been unable to evacuate south due to overcrowding.

The United Nations estimated in late August that about one million Palestinians lived in and around Gaza’s largest urban centre, where it said a famine was unfolding after months of worsening conditions.

The world body and members of the international community have urged the military to abandon its plans to capture the city, warning the assault and ensuing displacement could worsen the already dire humanitarian situation.

On Saturday, Arabic-language army spokesman Avichay Adraee said on X that “more than a quarter of a million residents of Gaza City have moved out of the city for their own safety”.

Gaza’s civil defence agency, however, reported a much lower figure, saying fewer than 70,000 had managed to leave.

The Israeli military dropped leaflets on Saturday urging residents in western districts to evacuate, as the civil defence reported continuous air strikes.

“The Israeli army is operating with very intense force in your area and is determined to dismantle and defeat Hamas,” the leaflets read, urging people to evacuate south. “You have been warned.”

Mohammad Abu Salmiya, head of the Al-Shifa medical complex, told AFP that displacement was continuing inside Gaza City, with residents moving from east to west, but “only a small number of people have been able to reach the south”.

“Even those who manage to flee south often find no place to stay, as Al-Mawasi and Deir al-Balah are overcrowded,” the senior official said, adding many had returned to Gaza City.

South ‘not safe either’

“The actual number of displaced people from Gaza to the south is approximately 68,000 only,” civil defence spokesman Mahmud Bassal told AFP.

“Many residents are still holding their ground, and many others cannot find space in the south.” Bakri Diab, who fled western Gaza City for the south, said Israeli strikes continued there as well.

“Bombing happens here too — the south isn’t safe either,” said the 35-year-old father of four. “All the occupation has done is force people to crowd into places with no basic services and no safety.”

Israel has come under mounting international pressure to halt its Gaza City offensive, but says it is determined to dismantle what it describes as one of Hamas’s last strongholds.

Published in Dawn, September 14th, 2025