Families flee after new Israeli Gaza evacuation orders

Hopes of a Gaza ceasefire dimmed after Israel issued new evacuation orders for Deir Al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip, forcing more families to flee, saying forces intended to act against Hamas and others operating in the area.

Israel has issued several evacuation orders across Gaza, the most since the beginning of the 10-month war, prompting an outcry from Palestinians, the United Nations and relief officials over the reduction of humanitarian zones and the absence of safe areas.

The Deir Al-Balah municipality says Israeli evacuation orders have so far displaced 250,000 people.

Israeli military strikes killed at least seven Palestinians on Monday, medics said. Two were killed in Deir Al-Balah, where around a million people were sheltering, two at a school in the Al-Nuseirat camp and three in the southern city of Rafah, near the border with Egypt.

The new orders forced many families and patients to leave Al-Aqsa Hospital, the main medical facility in Deir Al-Balah, where hundreds of thousands of residents and displaced people had taken shelter, for fear of bombardments.

The hospital is close to the area covered by the evacuation notice.

Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) said in a statement on X on Sunday night that an explosion approximately 250 meters (820 feet) away from the MSF-supported Al-Aqsa Hospital triggered panic.

"As a result, MSF is considering whether to suspend wound care for the time being, while trying to maintain life-saving treatment."

From around 650 patients, only 100 remain in the hospital, with seven in intensive care unit, it said, citing Gaza's health ministry.

"This situation is unacceptable. Al Aqsa has been operating well beyond capacity for weeks due to the lack of alternatives for patients. All warring parties must respect the hospital, as well as patients' access to medical care," it added.