CAIRO – Israeli bombardment pushed more Palestinians out of their homes in Gaza City on Sept 4, while thousands of residents defied Israeli orders to leave, remaining behind in the ruins in the path of Israel’s latest advance.

The Gaza health authorities said Israeli fire across the enclave had killed at least 28 people on Sept 4, most of them in Gaza City, where Israeli forces have advanced through the outer suburbs and are now a few kilometers from the city centre.

Israel launched the offensive in Gaza City on Aug 10, in what Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says is a plan to defeat Hamas militants once and for all in the part of Gaza where Israeli troops fought most heavily in the war’s initial phase.

The campaign has prompted international criticism because of the dire humanitarian crisis in the area, and has provoked unusual expressions of concern within Israel, including accounts of tension over strategy between some military commanders and political leaders.

“This time, I am not leaving my house. I want to die here. It doesn’t matter if we move out or stay. Tens of thousands of those who left their homes were killed by Israel too, so why bother?” Ms Um Nader, a mother of five from Gaza City, told Reuters via text message.

Residents said Israel bombarded Gaza City’s Zeitoun, Sabra and Shejaia districts from ground and air.

Tanks pushed into the eastern part of the Sheikh Radwan district northwest of the city centre, destroying houses and causing fires in tent encampments.

There was no immediate Israeli comment on those reports. The Israeli military has said it is operating on the outskirts of the city to dismantle militants’ tunnels and locate weapons.

Much of Gaza City was laid to waste in the war’s initial weeks in October to November 2023. About a million people lived there before the war, and hundreds of thousands are believed to have returned to live among the ruins, especially since Israel ordered people out of other areas and launched offensives elsewhere.