In the Al-Aqsa Martyrs' Hospital, people are packing up to move on. The Israeli military's new evacuation order for people in Dayr al-Balah does not apply to healthcare facilities, but those who are there fear that the situation will become risky anyway.
Many of them have already fled several times within Gaza.
We have nowhere to go, says Maha al-Sarsak, who previously fled from the city of Gaza.
UN suspends
The UN stated on Monday that all humanitarian efforts in Gaza must be stopped due to the latest developments.
We cannot carry out any operations today, said a high-ranking UN official on Monday afternoon.
This does not mean a decision to stop our operations, but in practice, we cannot operate at present, continued the UN representative.
After ten months of war, large parts of the Gaza Strip have been reduced to ruins by extensive Israeli bombings. Most healthcare facilities have had to close completely or partially. Israel's evacuation orders now apply to more than 80 percent of Gaza's area, according to a UN calculation.
Many who leave the hospital in Dayr al-Balah do so on foot. Some are carried on stretchers. Some are patients and some had sought shelter in the building.
Doctors Without Borders (MSF), which has staff at the hospital, reports that an explosion occurred about 250 meters from the hospital on Sunday and that it caused many to flee faster.
Special protection
Israeli forces have entered several hospitals during the war, accusing the terrorist-designated Islamist movement Hamas of hiding militiamen among the thousands of people who have sought shelter there. The Hamas-controlled healthcare system in the area has denied this.
The Israeli military claims that it is targeting Hamas activities in Dayr al-Balah and emphasizes that it has informed the hospitals of this.
Hospitals are entitled to special protection in wartime according to international law, but this can cease to apply if the buildings are used for military purposes. In such cases, consideration must still be given to civilians.
