GAZA, (PIC)
The Gaza Strip has witnessed a sharp escalation in Israeli attacks in recent days, including mass killings and assassinations, alongside official Israeli statements pointing to plans to expand military control inside the enclave and revive proposals for the forced displacement of Palestinians.
The heaviest waves of Israeli bombardment coincided with the eve and early days of Eid al-Adha, reflecting a policy aimed at destroying any remaining signs of normal life, including religious occasions in the beleaguered enclave.
For the third consecutive year, Gaza’s residents are marking the Eid holiday under killing, starvation and displacement, as the foundations of civil and social life continue to collapse under Israel’s genocide.
Genocidal acts as a tool of ethnic cleansing
Raji Sourani, director general of the Palestinian Center for Human Rights, said the nature and scale of the violations point to a systematic policy that uses genocidal acts as a tool to impose ethnic cleansing.
He said statements by Israel’s political and military leadership amount to a clear acknowledgment of policies designed to create living conditions that make survival impossible for Gaza’s population, by targeting their physical existence and destroying the conditions needed for life.
Such policies, he said, pave the way for forced displacement, which is prohibited under international law.
Field incidents
In a statement, the Palestinian Center for Human Rights documented a series of attacks between May 25 and 28, 2026.
In Khan Yunis, Israeli warplanes bombed agricultural land and a vegetable warehouse after issuing an evacuation warning, causing widespread destruction and injuries.
In Deir al-Balah, an Israeli airstrike targeted a residential block near Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital following a similar warning, destroying two homes and causing extensive damage to nearby houses, a mosque and civilian vehicles, while also wounding residents.
The same pattern was repeated in al-Shati refugee camp, west of Gaza City, where residents were forced to evacuate their homes minutes before the area was bombed.
The attack caused major destruction to residential buildings and triggered panic and mass displacement, amid the absence of any safe areas.
In another incident, Israeli warplanes struck a residential building sheltering displaced families in central Gaza City, killing 10 people, including children, women and an elderly man, and wounding around 30 others.
Some of the victims were in displacement tents surrounding the building and were hit by flying shrapnel. Several bodies were badly burned.
An Israeli airstrike also hit a residential and commercial building in the densely populated al-Rimal neighborhood one day before Eid al-Adha, killing six Palestinians, including women, and wounding dozens.
The attack completely destroyed the building and caused major damage to shops, infrastructure, communications networks and electricity lines.
In a separate attack, an Israeli drone strike killed two people traveling in a civilian vehicle southwest of Khan Yunis.
In al-Maghazi refugee camp, local militias established and funded by Israel carried out a field operation that ended with the execution of a Palestinian man after his hands had been tied. Four others were killed in shelling that targeted a civilian gathering, and several residents were wounded.
An Israeli strike also targeted a displacement tent in al-Mawasi, west of Khan Yunis, killing a young girl and a woman and wounding more than 20 people. Another girl later died from her injuries.
Plans for wider control and displacement
The escalation came as Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he had instructed the army to take control of 70% of the Gaza Strip, after Israel’s control had already reached 60%, according to his remarks.
The statement followed comments by Israeli war minister Israel Katz about implementing a plan for what he described as “voluntary migration” from Gaza.
Rights experts say the timing of the intensified attacks alongside these official statements points to an integrated policy aimed at emptying Gaza of its population through killing, starvation and destruction, while imposing conditions that force civilians to flee or leave.
The Palestinian Center for Human Rights said describing such a situation as “voluntary migration” contradicts international law and amounts, in substance, to the crime of forced displacement.
Hamas criticizes Board of Peace silence
Hamas spokesman Hazem Qassem criticized the complete silence of the so-called Board of Peace and its executive director, Nikolay Mladenov, over Israeli government statements about controlling 70% of Gaza and continuing plans to displace Palestinians.
Qassem said the statements represent a clear violation of the plan to end the war and the announced understandings on Gaza.
He said the failure to condemn Israel’s expansionist policies and forced displacement plans raises serious questions about whether the sponsoring parties are committed to compelling Israel to honor its obligations and stop its repeated violations.
Qassem called on Arab and friendly states represented in the Board of Peace to issue a clear position on Israel’s threats and repeated ceasefire violations, and to take practical steps to pressure Israel to halt its aggressive policies and attempts to impose new facts on the ground.
Amid the escalation, most Gaza residents are living through a harsh contradiction: clinging to life while fearing what may come next.
Families continue to hold on to what remains of ordinary daily routines, even as danger expands and safety disappears, in an effort to preserve a minimum level of psychological and social stability.
At the same time, intensifying bombardment and expanding military operations have imposed a heavy state of uncertainty. The coming days remain unclear, while civilians continue trying to manage daily life under the combined weight of resilience, fear and relentless pressure.