By Athena Papakosta

The Israeli armed forces have repeatedly called on the residents of the second largest city, Khan Younis, which is located in the southern part of the Gaza Strip, to evacuate it as soon as possible. The Israeli military’s military operations are turning south into the Palestinian enclave as Israel believes that this is where the Hamas leadership is hiding on the map.

As is immediately apparent, as the Israeli army shifts its offensive to the southern part of the Gaza Strip, there is no safe place left for the civilian population who lives in the Palestinian enclave. Just consider that nearly 1.8 million civilians – out of a total population of 2.3 million – have already been displaced as they obeyed the Israeli army’s orders to leave the northern part and head for the southern part of the Strip.

Already the bombardment around Khan Yunis and the city of Rafah is intensifying, while parts of the north remain the focus of Israeli air and ground operations.

As reported by the Health Ministry of Hamas, since October 7 the number of dead has exceeded 15,500 with 70% of the victims being women and children. As far as the injured are concerned, they exceed 41,000.

Israel’s closest ally, the United States of America, makes it clear through the country’s vice president, Kamala Harris, that it will not allow the forced relocation of Palestinians from Gaza or the West Bank, the permanent siege of Gaza or the redrawing of its borders, and they repeat that “international humanitarian law must be respected” since – as they note – once again “too many innocent Palestinians have been killed”.

However, army spokesman Vice Admiral Daniel Hagari announced on Sunday night that Israel’s ground forces were expanding their operations across the Gaza Strip with Chief of Staff General Herji Halevi stressing that “his operation Israel in southern Gaza will be equivalent to the previous attack of the Israeli army against Hamas in the northern part of the Palestinian enclave.

At the same time, the thermometer of tension is rising dangerously in the last hours as, according to the American Pentagon, an American warship and several commercial ships were attacked. However, Yemen’s Tehran-backed Houthi rebels claimed responsibility for attacks on two ships they described as being linked to Israel. However, according to a spokesman for the Israeli armed forces, who spoke to Reuters on condition of anonymity, the two ships that the Houthis said they targeted had no connection to Israel.

Already the hopes for a new truce agreement are fading. Israel on Saturday invited a delegation of Mossad negotiators to return from Qatar to Israel. For his part, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reiterates that the war will continue until all of Israel’s goals are achieved, while senior Hamas official Osama Hamdan stresses that the resumption of talks should be linked to a permanent ceasefire.

On the other side of the Atlantic, the representative of the National Security Council, John Kirby, speaking to the American network NBC, emphasized that Washington is “working very hard” for the resumption of negotiations.

During the seven-day ceasefire, 105 Israeli hostages and 240 Palestinian prisoners were released. However, anguish for the remaining 137 Israeli hostages remains with their families appealing to the Israeli leadership stressing that time “is running out for those still held by Hamas”.