The Israeli military on Friday announced its first ground invasion of the Gaza Strip since airstrikes on Palestinian cities began.
The military said in a statement Friday that troops had entered the Gaza Strip to fight insurgents, destroy weapons and search for evidence of missing Hamas hostages.This announcement appears not to have been the start of a ground invasion of Gaza, as had been expected. Israel has kept troops on its border with the Gaza Strip since last Saturday's deadly invasion by Hamas militants.
SaharaReporters previously reported that thousands of Palestinians have begun fleeing from the northern Gaza Strip to the southern Gaza Strip seeking refuge after Israel warned of expected ground attacks against Hamas in the ongoing displacement war. Ta. It was also reported that the Israeli military has warned 1.1 million residents of the northern Gaza Strip to evacuate their homes, as Israel will step up retaliatory attacks against Hamas following last Saturday's sudden terrorist attack.
Gaza is already one of the most densely populated areas in the world. More than 2 million people live in an area of 140 square miles.
Israel's evacuation warning came after armed Hamas militants breached the heavily militarized border around the Gaza Strip and killed more than 1,300 people, most of them civilians, in nearby Israeli settlements.