Gaza City’s high-rises on target amid Israel’s 1st evacuation notices

Israel on Sept. 5 issued its first formal evacuation notices for a neighborhood in Gaza City, as the Israeli military said that it will strike a range of targets in the coming days, particularly high-rise buildings.

The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) dropped leaflets over the Sheikh Radwan neighborhood in northwest Gaza City.

“The bolt is now being removed from the gates of hell in Gaza,” Defense Minister Israel Katz posted on X.

“Once the door is opened, it will not be closed and IDF operations will intensify — until Hamas’s murderers and rapists accept Israel’s conditions for ending the war, first and foremost the release of all hostages and disarmament — or be destroyed,” he added.

On the same day, in a statement, the military said it had "conducted extensive intelligence gathering operations and identified significant Hamas terrorist activity within a wide variety of infrastructure sites in Gaza City, and particularly in high-rise buildings.”

"In the coming days, the [Israeli military] will strike structures that have been converted into terrorist infrastructure in Gaza City: Cameras, observation command centers, sniper and anti-tank firing positions, command-and-control compounds," the statement said.

Alongside that announcement, media outlets in Gaza reported that the IDF struck the Al-Mushtaha Tower in Gaza City three times. Footage showed a heavy cloud of smoke at the site, after residents were called to evacuate.

Israel estimates that its imminent offensive on Gaza City would displace 1 million Palestinians. On the other hand, Israeli media reported another evaluation by the military: About 200,000 residents of Gaza City, about 20 percent of those who currently remain, will refuse to evacuate and will stay in the combat zone, even if their lives are in danger.

In a televised briefing, Israeli military spokesman Brigadier General Effie Defrin said on Sept. 4 that "we hold 40 percent of the territory of Gaza City,” adding that the offensive "will continue to expand and intensify in the coming days.”

Meanwhile, Israel on Sept. 5 marked 700 days since Hamas’s October 2023 attack, with demonstrations across the country demanding a deal to secure the remaining captives’ release.

On the same day, Hamas released footage purporting to show two hostages.

The video shows one hostage in a car being driven through a neighborhood with destroyed buildings, calling on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu not to carry out a planned military offensive to conquer Gaza City.

Towards the end of the clip, he is shown meeting another captive, whose family have asked that he not be identified.