"Gaza City – In the midst of harrowing numbers of Palestinian deaths and injuries under Israeli bombardment is a smaller figure: 20.
Twenty families have been erased from Gaza’s cohesive society, in which everyone knows everyone else going back generations.."
"Overnight from Thursday to Friday, the Israeli army dropped leaflets over Gaza ordering Palestinians to leave northern Gaza and Gaza City and head south.
Just over one million people live in the area Israel wants to clear, and while thousands did head south, many people stayed where they were because they could not arrange transport, chose to stay in their homes or heeded a call by Hamas to ignore Israel’s demand.
Israel’s attacks on residential areas have filled hospital corridors with injured people, some falling to the floor due to the lack of available beds, surgical rooms and intensive care units.
At the moment, much of the discussion being had to solve this situation has revolved around the idea of humanitarian corridors to allow Palestinians to leave Gaza. The suggestion to open an overland crossing into Egypt was rejected by Cairo, which did agree to open the crossing for humanitarian aid.
But Palestinian officials in Gaza argued that the urgency of the situation demands more immediate action to stop the bombardment and prevent further deaths and human suffering.
Health Ministry Director Munir al-Barsh said the Israeli air attacks have “criminally and systematically targeted residential blocks”, which means that a majority of the victims are civilians.
“The bombing is targeting everyone, including homes, health facilities and ambulance crews,” he said at a press conference on Thursday.
Israel says it will keep on targeting Hamas and resistance groups in Gaza.
Palestinians in Gaza are left living under the falling bombs and in the destruction, facing hunger, the lack of clean drinking water and the potential spread of infectious diseases.
As the number of victims rises and more and more families disappear from Palestine’s rich tapestry of history and culture, there is a bewildered note to the mourning as people try to come to grips with what these disappearances mean."
Palestinian Ministry of Health reports at least 20 families have been killed, and entire neighbourhoods lie in ruins.
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