On September 9, 2025, the Israeli military issued its most sweeping directive yet in the nearly two-year-long Gaza conflict: a full evacuation order for Gaza City, home to around one million Palestinians. The move signaled the beginning of what Israeli officials described as a massive ground offensive to seize control of Hamas’ last significant stronghold, but it also set off a new wave of chaos, fear, and uncertainty for hundreds of thousands of civilians already battered by months of war and repeated displacement.
The evacuation order, delivered both through social media and by leaflets dropped from the sky, was clear and urgent. “To all residents of Gaza City and all its neighborhoods, from the Old City and Tuffah in the east to the sea in the west. The IDF is determined to defeat Hamas and will operate in the Gaza City area with great force, just as it did throughout the Strip,” declared Avichay Adraee, the Israeli military’s Arabic-language spokesperson, according to CNN. He added, “For your safety, evacuate immediately via the Rashid axis toward the humanitarian zone in Al-Mawasi.”
This marked the first time the entire city had been ordered to evacuate. Previously, only specific districts were told to leave ahead of targeted operations. As Associated Press reporters witnessed, the new order triggered a surge in the number of vehicles and people streaming out of Gaza City, with families perched atop trucks laden with their remaining belongings—blankets, chairs, and whatever else could be salvaged. Yet, for many, the order posed an impossible dilemma: where to go, and how to get there?
“We were displaced two days ago, and here we are, my wife and I, unfortunately, sleeping in the street,” Hazem Abu Reyash told the Associated Press. “There’s no shelter, no tent, nothing, no water, no food.” The United Nations and humanitarian groups monitoring the situation confirmed that the number of people fleeing the city nearly doubled the daily average in recent weeks, but also noted that many families remained stuck due to the prohibitive cost of transportation and the lack of available housing.
For others, the prospect of another displacement was simply too much to bear. “Where can we go?” asked Alaa Haddad, a 29-year-old resident, in an interview with The New York Times. “Even if there is a place, we don’t want to be displaced again because it is degrading and humiliating.” Mohammad Ashraf, another resident, echoed the sense of despair: “There’s no place for us. This is the second time we’ve been displaced, paying 800 shekels ($240) for a vehicle and finding nothing. We don’t know if God will make things easier for us. God willing, they’ll hit us with nuclear weapons and we’ll find relief.”
The United Nations estimates that about one million Palestinians—roughly half of Gaza’s total population—were living in northern Gaza around Gaza City before the evacuation order. As of September 10, Israeli officials reported that only about 70,000 people, less than 10% of the city’s population, had actually managed to leave. Many simply could not afford the journey south. The U.N. humanitarian agency reported that it could cost more than $1,000 to arrange transportation and other necessities for a family to relocate to southern Gaza, a sum far out of reach for most.
The Israeli military, meanwhile, pressed ahead with its campaign. In the two days leading up to the evacuation order, Israeli forces demolished 50 high-rise buildings in Gaza City, claiming they were being used by Hamas for military purposes. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu described the destruction as “only the beginning of the main intensive operation—the ground incursion of our forces.” The AP reported that first responders managed to rescue two survivors and recover two bodies from the rubble of one collapsed building, while others remained trapped beneath the debris.
Israel’s stated objective is to prevent Hamas fighters from regrouping and launching further attacks. According to military spokesperson Brig. Gen. Effie Defrin, Israeli forces already had “operational control” of about 40% of Gaza City and planned to “expand and intensify” their offensive in the coming days. Yet, as The New York Times noted, international aid agencies and some of Israel’s own security officials have expressed deep reservations about the operation, warning of the catastrophic humanitarian consequences for civilians.
United Nations Human Rights Chief Volker Türk issued a stark warning, stating that further escalation in Gaza City would lead to “more massive forced displacement, more killing, more unbearable suffering, senseless destruction and atrocity crimes.” Philippe Lazzarini, head of the U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees, was equally blunt: “There is no safe place in Gaza, let alone a humanitarian zone.”
The humanitarian situation is grim. The U.N. reported that many displacement sites in southern Gaza are already overcrowded, with little infrastructure to support new arrivals. As of early September, only about 3,000 tents had entered the territory, despite Israeli promises to deliver 100,000 tents within three weeks. More than 86,000 tents and other supplies were still awaiting clearance to enter Gaza, according to the U.N. An Israeli official told CNN, “We want to flood Gaza with tents.” Aid distribution remains a challenge as well, with plans by the United States and Israel to expand the number of aid sites run by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation from four to 16—though notably, none of the new sites are in Gaza City itself.
For those who do make it south, finding shelter is another struggle. Mohammad Fares, a 24-year-old displaced resident, told The New York Times that he spent three days searching for affordable housing for his family before finally securing a one-room apartment for $500 a month—an exception rather than the rule, he said. Many others have no choice but to sleep in the open or in makeshift shelters.
Back in Gaza City, some residents and medical workers have chosen to stay and protest the evacuation order. “We will never leave our land… health care workers won’t leave,” said Dr. Muneer al-Boursh, general director of Gaza’s Health Ministry, according to the Associated Press. Dr. Rami Mhanna, managing director of Shifa Hospital, reported that the hospital remained open but described an atmosphere of intense psychological pressure on both staff and patients.
The war’s toll continues to mount. The conflict began on October 7, 2023, when Hamas-led militants killed about 1,200 people in Israel and abducted 251 others. As of September 9, 2025, Gaza’s Health Ministry reported more than 64,000 Palestinians killed—about half of them women and children. Around 90% of Gaza’s two million people have been displaced, and large swaths of the territory lie in ruins. Hostage families in Israel, meanwhile, have pleaded with their government to halt the offensive, fearing for the lives of the 48 hostages still believed to be inside Gaza.
The violence has not been confined to Gaza. On September 8, two 14-year-old Palestinian boys were killed during an incident with Israeli soldiers in Jenin, in the West Bank. That same day, two Palestinians opened fire at a Jerusalem bus stop, killing six people—a deadly attack for which Hamas claimed responsibility, though Israeli security officials said the attackers had no known militant ties.
As the Israeli military presses forward with its operation and evacuation order, Gaza’s civilians are once again left to choose between the perils of flight and the dangers of staying put. The world watches, but for those on the ground, the options are as stark as ever—and the suffering only deepens.
