The latest in the ongoing situation in Gaza reveals that the Israeli military has intensified its ground operations in Gaza City, compelling residents to evacuate the area.
From the southern part of the enclave, UNICEF spokesperson Tess Ingram voiced her concerns over the mass forced relocation of families, deeming it a serious danger, especially for the most defenseless.
“It is unspeakably cruel to expect nearly half a million children, already traumatized by over 700 days of constant conflict, to abandon one nightmare only to be thrust into another,” she declared.
Approximately 150,000 individuals have moved south within the last month, according to the UN’s Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA). The single available route, Al Rashid Road, has been reported as very congested.
Ingram recounted an encounter with a mother who had trekked over six hours from Gaza City to the South with her five children, all in dire conditions. They, along with thousands of others, are being directed to a proclaimed “humanitarian zone” around Al-Mawasi and its surroundings, yet the area is described as a “sea of improvised tents and human suffering,” with services barely adequate for the hundreds of thousands already dwelling there.
Child malnutrition has been on the rise in Gaza, with UNICEF estimating over 26,000 children in need of treatment for severe malnutrition, over 10,000 of whom are in Gaza City alone. Famine has been officially declared in Gaza City by UN-endorsed experts in food insecurity.
Due to evacuation orders and military intensification, additional nutrition centers in Gaza City have had to close, depriving children of essential treatment sites that could save their lives.
Though humanitarian workers continue their efforts despite the growing challenges of bombardment and restrictions, OCHA reports that out of 17 coordinated missions with Israeli authorities last Sunday, only four were successful. Seven were denied, and several faced impediments or had to be aborted.
Ingram illustrated the predicament faced by Gazans: “to stay in harm’s way or to flee to another place equally hazardous.” She referenced an incident two weeks prior, when Al-Mawasi was attacked and eight children lost their lives while queuing for water; the youngest victim was just three years old.
Stay tuned for further updates.
Source: https://news.un.org/feed/view/en/story/2025/09/1165858
