Jerusalem, August 30 (LaPresse) – Israel plans to slow down or halt humanitarian aid in the northern part of Gaza as it expands its offensive against Hamas. An anonymous official told the Associated Press that Israel will halt humanitarian aid drops over Gaza City in the coming days and reduce the number of aid trucks in the northern part of the Strip while preparing to evacuate residents to the south. For several days now, no aid drops have taken place over Gaza, a pause compared to the near-daily drops in recent weeks. Yesterday, Israel declared Gaza City a combat zone, calling it Hamas' stronghold. The military has intensified attacks on the outskirts of the city. AP video footage on Friday night showed several large explosions across Gaza. Humanitarian organizations warn that a large-scale evacuation will worsen the humanitarian crisis. "It is impossible to conduct a mass evacuation of Gaza City in a safe and dignified manner," said Mirjana Spoljaric, president of the International Committee of the Red Cross. Hundreds of residents have begun to leave, but many complain that there is no safe place to seek refuge. According to the United Nations, 23,000 evacuations took place in the past week. Yesterday, Israeli military spokesman Avichay Adraee urged Palestinians to flee south, calling the evacuation "inevitable."
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