The IDF is expanding its ground offensive into Deir al-Balah in central Gaza, an area that up until now it has avoided so as not to endanger hostages thought to be held there. “The IDF continues to operate with great force to destroy the enemy’s capabilities and terror infrastructure in the area, as it expands its activities into an area where it has not operated before,” the IDF’s Arabic-language spokesperson, Col. Avichay Adraee, said on X, reported the Times of Israel.
“Can anyone promise us that this decision will not come at the cost of the loss of our loved ones?” the Hostage and Missing Families Forum said in a statement after the announcement.
ToI notes that because of the relatively light fighting in the Deir al-Balah area, refugees from other parts of Gaza have sought shelter there, and most buildings remain standing. The July 20 announcement told civilians to head south to the Mawasi area on the coast, where hundreds of thousands of Palestinians are already massed.
