Evacuation order is largest in Gaza since October: UN
The Israel Defense Forces' evacuation order for a region in southern Gaza on Monday was the largest such order since October 2023, according to the United Nations.
The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East estimated that 250,000 people are impacted by the evacuation order in Khan Younis. The evacuation zone covers 117 square kilometers, according to U.N. spokesperson Stephane Dujarric.
"[The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs] underscores that an evacuation of such a massive scale will only heighten the suffering of civilians and drive humanitarian needs even higher," Dujarric said in a statement Tuesday. "People are left with the impossible choice of having to relocate, some most likely for the second or even the third time, to areas that have barely any space or services, or stay in an area where they know the fighting will take place."
The IDF said it ordered Palestinians to evacuate amid its response to a rocket attack that came from the area involving approximately 20 projectiles, some of which fell inside southern Israel.