The displacement of Palestinians from the city of Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip continues with dozens of cars carrying displaced families leaving the area, fleeing military operations, to Deir al-Balah. 

However, just like in Rafah, Deir al-Balah, in the central Gaza City, is also facing heavy Israeli bombardment.

Regional and international warnings are escalating as mediators scramble to secure a ceasefire before the Israeli army launches a ground invasion of Rafah, with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu insisting that an offensive on the city will commence regardless. 
 
Around 1.4 million Palestinians have taken refuge in Rafah since the outbreak of the Israel-Gaza war on October 7. 

Israel declared war on Palestinian Hamas militants in the Gaza Strip after the group launched a large-scale air, ground, and sea offensive and infiltrated Israeli territory on October 7. Netanyahu vowed to turn all Hamas-controlled locations into “islands of ruins.”

Nearly 29,000 people have been killed in the Gaza Strip since Israel declared war on Palestinian Hamas after the group infiltrated Israeli territory on October 7 and killed some 1,200 people. On Monday, Israel killed hundreds when it launched a military offensive into Gaza’s southernmost Rafah, a city it initially told Palestinians to evacuate to.