On foot and by donkey cart, thousands flee widening Israeli assault in central Gaza
Thousands of Palestinian families are fleeing from the brunt of Israel’s expanding ground offensive into Gaza’s few remaining, overcrowded refuges. The movement comes as the military launches heavy strikes across the center and south of the territory. Palestinian health officials say dozens of people have been killed. The fleeing families arrive on foot or riding donkey carts loaded with belongings. A stream of people flowed into Deir al-Balah — a town that normally has a population of around 75,000. It has been overwhelmed by several hundred thousand people driven from northern Gaza as the region was pounded to rubble.