Israeli tanks mass on border ahead of ‘imminent invasion’

An extended deadline to evacuate Gaza ran out on Saturday

Israeli army personnel prepare for battle near Ashkelon on Sunday (AFP)

Thousands of Israeli forces have massed on the border with Gaza ahead of an “imminent” invasion as the deadline for Palestinian civilians to flee southwards expired on Saturday afternoon.

Israel has called up some 360,000 military reserves ahead of the anticipated offensive, while tanks and heavy weaponry have also been brought to the border as airstrikes continue to pound the besieged enclave.

The Israeli military issued a statement on Saturday saying they would “not carry out” any strikes along the Salah Al-Din “safe route” from Gaza City down to the southern regions of the Strip between 1000 [GMT 0700] and 1300 local time [GMT 1000].

In a direct message to Palestinians in Gaza, they added: “Your safety and that of your families matters.”

The World Health Organisation on Sunday said the forced evacuation of hospitals violated international law.

Benjamin Netanyahu, the PM of Israel, held an emergency government meeting to discuss the movement of troops into Gaza. He said that they “will dismantle Hamas”, who he described as “bloodthirsty monsters”.

The offensive was initially planned for the weekend, according to senior Israeli officers, but has had to be delayed in part because of poor weather conditions that would have made it difficult for pilots and drone operators to provide air cover to soldiers on the ground.

Israeli military spokesperson Richard Hecht “confirmed” that 126 people were still being held hostage by the militant group in Gaza.

He said the original figure of 150 hostages had been revised down as bodies from the sites attacked by Hamas on 7 October continue to be discovered. Hamas has claimed that 22 hostages were killed in Israeli strikes on the Strip, although they have not provided evidence.

It comes as the United Nations warned that Gaza is being “pushed into an abyss” as thousands remain in the northern regions despite evacuation orders, fearful of what may happen if they travel southward in open territory.

Juliette Touma, director of communications for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) for Palestine Refugees, told the BBC: “This is the worst we’ve ever seen, This is hitting rock bottom.

“This is Gaza being pushed into an abyss, there is tragedy unfolding as the world is watching. This is Gaza.”

Palestinian children look at the building of the Zanon family, destroyed in Israeli airstrikes in Rafah (AP)

At least 2,670 Palestinians have been killed and 9,600 wounded since the fighting erupted, according to the Gaza health ministry. More than 1,300 Israelis were killed in the initial attacks, many of whom were civilians.

British foreign secretary James Cleverly said he had spoken to the Israeli government to urge them to show restraint ahead of any military action in Gaza over concern that more civilians will be killed.

Though he said he “respected Israel’s right to self-defence”, he added that “restraint and discipline” would be vital to a successful offensive.

Medics in Gaza have warned that thousands could die as hospitals packed with wounded people run desperately low on fuel and basic supplies.

A British-Palestinian surgeon working out of the al-Shifaa Hospital in northern Gaza described the situation as “catastrophic”.

He told The Independent that there are “families sitting on the floor in the corridor and all the way out into the stair and outside the building”.

“We think there are tens of thousands like them around the hospital,” he said.

When asked if the morgues were overflowing, Dr Abu-Sitta said: “People are too afraid to go to cemeteries. There are around 50 families who have been completely wiped out because people are seeking refuge with their relatives.”

Hospitals are expected to run out of generator fuel within two days, according to the latest comments from the UN.

Dr Hussam Abu Safiya, the head of pediatrics at the Kamal Adwan Hospital in northern Gaza, said they had refused to evacuate because it would “mean death” for many patients.

There are seven newborns in intensive care on ventilators, he said. “We cannot evacuate, that would mean death for them and other patients under our care.”

He added that patients keep arriving with severed limbs, severe burns and other life-threatening injuries.

In the southern town of Khan Younis, a doctor working at Nasser hospital said intensive care rooms were already packed with wounded patients, most of them children under the age of three.

Dr Mohammed Qandeel, a consultant at the critical care complex, said fuel is expected to run out on Sunday, after which “the whole health system will be shut down”.

Israeli soldiers patrol an undisclosed position near the northern border with Lebanon (AFP)

Away from Gaza, Israeli forces exchanged fire with heavily-armed Hezbollah fighters in southern Lebanon throughout Saturday as fears abounded that the Iranian-backed group could open a second front and initiate a wider conflict.

The UN headquarters in southern Lebanon was hit by a missile late in the afternoon after an “intense” bout of missiles struck the coastal city of Naqoura, where it is located. They said they were “working to verify from where” the rocket was fired.

Hamas’ armed wing, Al Qassam Brigades, said it fired 20 rockets from Lebanon on two Israeli settlements. Lebanon’s Hezbollah said it had targeted barracks in Israel’s Hanita with guided missiles, adding it had inflicted casualties on “the enemy ranks”.

Iran’s foreign minister Hossein Amirabdollahian, during a visit to Qatar, said regional powers in support of Hamas around Israel were waiting with their “hands ... on the trigger”.

He said “no-one could guarantee the … non-expansion of the conflict”. He also met Hamas’s leader Ismail Haniyeh, who is based in Qatar, on Saturday.

Mr Amirabdollahian said anyone who is interested in preventing the current crisis from growing must prevent the “current barbaric attacks” by Israel against “citizens and civilians in Gaza”.

Meanwhile, US secretary of state Antony Blinken returned to Israel following a frantic six-country tour through Arab nations aimed at preventing the fighting from igniting a broader regional conflict.