The move comes after the High Representative of the EU for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Josep Borrell, condemned an Israeli strike on a school in Gaza which killed dozens.
ADVERTISEMENTThe Israeli military has ordered more evacuations in southern Gaza after a deadly airstrike on a school-turned-shelter in the north killed at least 80 Palestinians, according to local health authorities. Israel claimed it had targeted a militant command post and killed 19 fighters.
Israel has repeatedly ordered mass evacuations as its troops have returned to heavily destroyed areas where they had previously battled Palestinian militants. The vast majority of Gaza's population of 2.3 million people has been displaced by the 10-month-long war, often multiple times.
Hundreds of thousands have crammed into squalid tent camps with few public services or sought shelter in schools like the one struck on Saturday. Palestinians say nowhere in the besieged territory feels safe.
The latest evacuation orders apply to areas in Khan Younis, including part of an Israeli-declared humanitarian zone from which the military said rockets had been fired. Israel accuses Hamas and other militants of hiding among civilians and launching attacks from residential areas.
Khan Younis, Gaza’s second-largest city, suffered widespread destruction during an air and ground offensive earlier this year. Tens of thousands fled again last week after an earlier evacuation order.
Hundreds of families carrying their belongings in their arms left their homes and shelters early Sunday, seeking elusive refuge.
Meanwhile, the EU foreign policy chief has said he was horrified by images of the Gaza school hit by the Israeli strike.
EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell said, “There’s no justification for these massacres” and added that a ceasefire was the only way to prevent the deaths of civilians.
Borrell said the EU fully supports the call by leaders from the US, Egypt, and Qatar to conclude ceasefire talks and a hostage release deal.
He also noted that over 40,000 Palestinians have been killed since the conflict began and criticised Israeli Minister Bezalel Smotrich for opposing a ceasefire.
Women, children and the elderly were reported to be among the dead. The strikes reportedly hit as people performed morning prayers in the school-turned-shelter.
Israel acknowledged the strike on the Tabeen school in central Gaza City, claiming a Hamas command centre had been located within it.
Izzat al-Rishq, a top Hamas official, denied there were any militants in the building.