Thousands of Palestinians have fled a community in the central Gaza Strip in the face of new Israeli evacuation orders, worsening the humanitarian plight in an area already inundated with displaced people fleeing an assault in the south.

Hamas has accused Israel of blocking a ceasefire, saying Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government had inserted new conditions into a longstanding truce proposal at the latest talks, conducted through international mediators.

Hundreds of thousands of people have converged on Deir al-Balah, a small city in the centre of the enclave that is the only major area yet to be stormed, many forced there by fighting in the ruins of Khan Younis further south since last week.

“What is left? Deir? Deir is full of people. Everyone is in Deir. All of Gaza. Where should people go?” Aya Mansour told Reuters in Deir after fleeing from Bureij.

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