Palestinian evacuees say thousands of people sheltering at Shifa hospital have fled after strikes
Published:Friday | November 10, 2023 | 9:42 AM
KHAN YOUNIS, Gaza Strip (AP) — Thousands of Palestinians on Friday fled from around Gaza City's main hospital after a series of strikes, that staff blamed on Israel, hit in and around several hospitals overnight.
They joined a growing exodus of people toward the south amid intensified fighting as Gaza officials said the Palestinian death toll from the war surpassed 11,000 people.
Thousands of Palestinians streamed onto Gaza's only highway Friday, fleeing the combat zone in the north after Israel announced a window for safe passage.
But the search for safety in the besieged enclave has grown increasingly desperate. The tens of thousands who fled south in the past few days face the prospect of ongoing bombardment and dire conditions.
The overnight strikes in northern Gaza underscored the danger for tens of thousands more who have crowded in and around hospitals, believing they will be safe.
Gaza medical officials accused Israel of striking near four hospitals Friday, though Israel said at least one was the result of a misfired Palestinian rocket.
Gaza's largest city is the focus of Israel's campaign to crush Hamas following its deadly October 7 surprise incursion.
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