Situation “ cataclysmic ” in Gaza City, known as a UN official, as Israeli tanks advance

The situation in Gaza City is “nothing less than cataclysmic,” said a UN official at the BBC, while Israeli tanks and troops continue to advance the third day of an offensive on the ground.

Olga Cherevko, spokesperson for the UN humanitarian office, said that she had seen a constant flow of Palestinians heading south during a recent visit to the city, but hundreds of thousands of people stayed.

The World Health Organization (WHO) warned that the exceeded hospitals were on the brink of collapse because it was prevented from providing rescue supplies.

The Israeli army said its forces “dismantle terrorist infrastructure and eliminated terrorists” in Gaza City.

He said his objectives were to release the hostages still held by Hamas and defeat up to 3,000 fighters in what he described as the group’s “main bastion”.

However, the offensive of the largest urban area in Gaza, where a million people lived and a famine was confirmed last month, carried out a generalized international conviction.

The UN and its humanitarian partners have recorded at least 200,000 people crossing the north south of Gaza since mid-August, when Israel has announced its intention to conquer the city of Gaza. About 55,000,000 have made the trip since Sunday.

Cherevko, who works for the United Nations humanitarian office in the central city of Deir al-Balah, told the BBC that she went to Gaza City two days ago-a round trip of 29 km (18 miles) which lasted 2 p.m.

“Things there, and the scenes on the way to Gaza City are simply cataclysmic,” she recalls.

“A constant flow of people (east) crossing north to the south, a lot on foot. Inside Gaza City, it is still very crowded because there are hundreds of thousands of civilians who remain there.”

She said that she had also witnessed several Israeli strikes “very close” to the United Nations convoy to Gaza City, adding: “It was really just a constant blow after the blow while we were there.”

Thursday morning, witnesses told the news agency in Reuters that they had seen Israeli tanks in the northern district of Sheikh Radwan and the southern district of Tal al-Hawa, which have undergone heavy bombardments in recent days.

They also indicated that Israeli forces had exploded vehicles from a distance led to explosives in both regions, destroying many houses.

Local hospitals said that at least 14 people were killed by Israeli fires across the Gaza Strip on Thursday, including nine in Gaza City.

The Israeli army said in a statement that its troops “extended” their operations in the city, without giving details on their movements.

Tuesday, at the start of the ground assault, the military chief of staff, the lieutenant -general Eyal Zamir, told the troops “to intensify the blows against Hamas and to defeat the Gaza City brigade in a decisive manner, in order to carry out the most moral and important duty – the return of all hostages to the house and the dismantling of military and government capacities of Hamas”.

Cherevko warned that many people were unable to comply with the order of the Israeli army to evacuate its “humanitarian zone” designated in the south.

“The costs of traveling your personal effects, if you are lucky enough to find a vehicle that will move them, is exorbitant. It is not affordable for many people. And that is why many do this on foot, barely with a mattress in their hands and perhaps a plastic bag.”

And once arrived, there was no guarantee of shelters or security, she added.

“I spoke to many people who recently arrived in Deir Al-Balah and (the southern city of) Khan Younis. Many of them sit on the side of the street, with nothing. They have no shelters. They don’t know where to go.

“Yesterday, I met a family that had been walking for four days, trying to find space to sleep and they did not succeed,” she said.

The WHO chief, Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, said that the Israeli offensive “forced traumatized families in an area in constant fight against human dignity”.

“The injured and people with disabilities cannot go to security, which makes their lives in serious danger,” he wrote on X.

“The hospitals, already overwhelmed, are on the verge of collapse while the escalation of violence blocks access and prevents (the) which delivers rescue supplies.”

The UN claims that there are currently around 1,790 hospital hospitals for the population of 2.1 million Gaza, which has caused occupancy rates of 180 to 300% in the 17 hospitals which remain partially functional throughout the territory.

Ten of these hospitals are in Gaza City and one is elsewhere in northern Gaza.

On Tuesday, the Al -Rrand children’s hospital in Gaza City – the only specialized pediatric hospital remains on the territory – has been affected by three Israeli strikes, causing damage to water tanks on the roof, electrical and communication systems and certain medical equipment, according to the Ministry of Health in Gaza, managed by Hamas.

Forty patients fled for safety after the attack, while 40 others, including four children in intensive care and eight newborns, remain inside.

The Israeli army has not yet commented.

The United Nations Fund for the United Nations has, for its part, warned that women were forced to give birth in the streets, without hospitals, doctors or drinking water.

The Israeli army launched a campaign in Gaza in response to the attack by Hamas against southern Israel on October 7, 2023, during which around 1,200 people were killed and 251 others were taken hostage.

At least 65,141 people have been killed in Israeli attacks in Gaza since then, according to the Ministry of Health of the Territory.

The ministry says that 435 other people have died so far during the war due to malnutrition and famine, including four in the past 24 hours.