Israel tells Palestinians to leave Deir al-Balah, an area previously untouched due to concerns about hostages

Israel has warned it would move for the first time into a town in the heart of the Gaza Strip that it had earlier skirted for fear of harming hostages. The warning came as it accused Hamas of stalling at US-brokered ceasefire talks and the war’s toll on Palestinian civilians spiraled.

The Israeli Defence Forces on Sunday told Palestinians in parts of Deir al-Balah to immediately evacuate southward to a tent city for hundreds of thousands of people displaced by 21 months of fighting.

The previous truce expired in early May, plunging the conflict into a deeper crisis.

Israel shuttered traditional aid distribution channels in favour of a US-backed alternative, known as the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), which it argued would help sideline Hamas. The UN has called it discriminatory and insufficient to stave off famine for many of the enclave’s residents.

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Palestinians leave the Deir al-Balah area on Sunday. Photo: AP

In parallel, the IDF launched a set of operations with the declared aim of taking Palestinian territory – an effort to pressure Hamas into releasing the remaining hostages from its October 7, 2023, attack that sparked the war.

The Hamas government says almost 1,000 Palestinians have been killed while waiting for aid during that period. Israel has disputed the circumstances and figures.

On Sunday, witnesses said Israeli tanks fired shells toward Palestinians awaiting the entry of food trucks in northern Gaza, an area that has seen intense clashes with Hamas holdouts. Dozens died, the Hamas-run health ministry said without elaborating. Chaotic aid distribution has at times led to lethal stampedes.

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The IDF said its troops fired warning shots in a bid to disperse thousands of Palestinians who posed a threat, and that it “views the transfer of humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip as a matter of utmost importance”.

While Israel controlled some 75 per cent of Gaza, the Iran-backed Islamist group has stuck to its demand that any ceasefire and hostage release be tied to a full withdrawal of Israeli forces. That has been rejected by Israel.

Deir al-Balah is one of a few pockets in the Gaza Strip where Israel’s forces have not manoeuvred and entire buildings remain standing. That is because Israeli intelligence assessments of hostages being held there. It was unclear if that remained the case as the new operation starts.

A girl runs as Israel strikes a school sheltering displaced people at the Bureij refugee camp in the central Gaza Strip on Thursday. Photo: Reuters TV

The Hamas attack in 2023 killed 1,200 people in Israel, with another 250 abducted and taken to Gaza. Some 50 hostages remain, of whom 20 were thought to be alive. Hamas has not commented on the locations of hostages, whom they threatened to execute if enemy troops approach.

The Hostages and Missing Families Forum, the largest advocacy group pushing for a negotiated hostage release, voiced concern at the Deir al-Balah plan.

“For the hostages, this is not a negotiating ‘bargaining chip’, but a clear and present danger to their fates. Enough! A sweeping majority of the nation of Israel wants the war ended in a comprehensive deal that returns all of the hostages,” the forum said in a statement.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on July 6 sent negotiators back to Qatar, a Hamas intermediary, ahead of a White House visit during which he and US President Donald Trump voiced hope for a diplomatic breakthrough that would enable the return of 10 living and 18 deceased hostages.

Gila Gamliel, a minister in Netanyahu’s security cabinet, accused Hamas of stonewalling and anticipated that Steve Witkoff, Trump’s special envoy, would fly in to join the talks.

“The moment he runs things in Doha, we will see what the ramifications are,” Gamliel told Israel’s Army Radio, referring to Witkoff. “Our negotiating team is still there, in hope of coming back with good news.”

Protesters in Tel Aviv, Israel demand the immediate release of hostages held in Gaza. Photo: Reuters

Witkoff’s office on Sunday said it had no travel updates at this point.

Another US special envoy, Adam Boehler, said he was optimistic about a deal and credited Israel with offering army redeployments within Gaza. “What I really want to see is Hamas take action,” Boehler said on CNN’s State of the Union. “And if they don’t, I will tell you something, Israel’s going to have to take some kinetic action.”

Hamas, which is on terrorism blacklists in much of the West, has warned that the latest deadlock endangers the hostages. “We have sustained their survival as much as possible, until now,” Abu Obeida, Hamas’ armed wing spokesperson, said on Friday.

“If the criminal enemy obstructs or withdraws from this round, we cannot guarantee a return to partial deals or to the proposal for the release of 10 captives,” he said.

Israel says it wants to free as many hostages as possible but also wants to destroy Hamas as a military and governing institution. That would entail disarming Hamas and exiling its leaders, Israel says. Hamas has rejected those conditions.

The war has killed 58,000 Palestinians, according to the Hamas-affiliated health ministry in Gaza, which does not distinguish between civilian and combatant casualties. Israel has lost more than 400 troops in Gaza combat.