Palestinians could be seen fleeing in Gaza City's Shejaiya neighbourhood on Thursday as the sound of airstrikes rang through the air. The Palestinian Civil Defence said at least seven people were killed in the strikes.
Plumes of smoke were seen rising behind damaged buildings and the sound of people screaming could be heard as scenes of panic unfolded.
"This is the occupation as you can see, this is the occupation. This is the occupation targets us, as you can see. You can just watch the children, targeting children here in Shejaiya neighbourhood," said the man filming video obtained by Reuters that captured the moment of bombardment.
Residents of the Shejaiya neighbourhood said they were taken by surprise by tanks rolling in and firing in the early afternoon, with drones also attacking after overnight bombing.
The armed wing of Hamas ally Islamic Jihad said it had detonated a pre-planted explosive device against an Israeli tank east of Shujaiya.
Israel accuses the militants of hiding among civilians and says it warns displaced people to get out of the way of its operations against the fighters.
"To all residents and displaced people in the Shujaiya area and the new neighborhoods ... For your safety, you must evacuate immediately south on Salah al-Din Street to the humanitarian zone," army spokesperson Avichay Adraee posted on X.
Residents and Hamas media said the tanks had rolled in before the post and that people from the eastern suburb were running westward under fire as Israel had blocked the road south. There was no other immediate comment from the Israeli military.
When Hamas-led militants stormed into southern Israel on Oct. 7, they killed around 1,200 people and seized more than 250 hostages, according to Israeli tallies.
At least 37,765 Palestinians have been killed and 86,429 wounded in Israel's military offensive on Gaza since Oct.7, the Gaza health ministry said in a statement on Thursday.
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