The Government Media Office in Gaza announced that more than 1.2 million Palestinians remain in Gaza City and the northern parts of the Strip, firmly refusing to leave despite ongoing bombardment and deteriorating humanitarian conditions.

It warned that the Israeli occupation is attempting to impose a policy of forced displacement in violation of international law, calling for urgent international intervention.

According to the statement, Gaza City and northern Gaza together are home to over 1.3 million people, including around 398,000 in North Gaza governorate, most of whom are currently displaced to the western parts of the city, and more than 914,000 in Gaza governorate, where some 300,000 have been forced from eastern neighborhoods toward western and central areas.

Reverse displacement amid dire conditions

The office noted the emergence of “reverse displacement,” reporting that more than 12,000 residents have returned to their original homes in Gaza and the north as of last Sunday, despite the fact that some 35,000 people had previously been forced to move south under heavy bombardment. This, it said, reflects both the severity of the suffering and the lack of basic living conditions in the southern areas.

It highlighted that the al-Mawasi area in Khan Younis and Rafah, promoted by the Israeli occupation as a “safe zone”, currently hosts nearly 800,000 people but has been targeted by 109 airstrikes, killing more than 2,000 Palestinians. The area, the statement added, lacks essential services including hospitals, infrastructure, electricity, water, food, and shelter.

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The Government Media Office stressed that the areas designated by the occupation as “shelters” cover just 12% of Gaza’s total land, while more than 1.7 million Palestinians are being crammed into them in a systematic attempt to empty Gaza City and the north of their population. It described the policy as a war crime, a crime against humanity, and a grave violation of international law.

The statement condemned what it called “ongoing genocide and forced displacement crimes” perpetrated by the Israeli occupation against Palestinian civilians. It held the occupation, along with the US administration and allied states, fully responsible for these violations.

The office further urged the international community, the United Nations, and legal institutions worldwide to take immediate and effective action to stop these crimes, prosecute Israeli leaders before competent courts, and guarantee the protection of Palestinian civilians and their right to remain on their land in safety and dignity.

'Israel' warns Gaza civilians

Israeli occupation forces intensified their attacks on Gaza City on Monday, destroying residential buildings and targeting neighborhoods with artillery and airstrikes.

According to local reports, fighter jets struck a residential building adjacent to the already-destroyed al-Israa Tower on al-Wehda Street, while heavy artillery fire hit the Sheikh Radwan neighborhood in the city’s northwest. Occupation forces also detonated a booby-trapped robot to demolish homes in the same area. Additional air raids were reported in northern Gaza City.

Palestinian platforms reported casualties, including martyrs and wounded, after Israeli drones opened fire near Kissufim, east of Deir al-Balah in central Gaza.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu directly addressed Palestinians in Gaza City, urging them to “leave now” as occupation forces prepare for what he described as a large-scale ground “maneuver.”

“I say to the residents of Gaza, I take this opportunity and listen to me carefully: you have been warned — leave now!” he declared, boasting that the Israeli military had already destroyed 50 towers in two days, which he said was only the beginning of a broader assault.