IDF set to begin ground operations in Deir al-Balah in central Gaza for first time

The IDF issues a new evacuation warning for Palestinians residing in the southwest of Deir al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip, as it is set to begin ground operations in the city for the first time since the start of the war.

“The IDF continues to operate with great force to destroy the enemy’s capabilities and terror infrastructure in the area, as it expands its activities into an area where it has not operated before,” says the IDF’s Arabic-language spokesperson, Col. Avichay Adraee, on X.

Civilians are instructed to head south to the Mawasi area on the coast.

It marks the first time since the beginning of the war that the IDF has issued an evacuation warning for the Deir al-Balah area, one of the few locations in the Strip where the military has not operated with ground troops.

The IDF has avoided ground operations in areas where it believes Hamas to be holding hostages, in order to not endanger them as the terror group has vowed to execute captives if troops near.

An estimated 350,000 Palestinians are residing in all of central Gaza, according to IDF estimates from May. It is unclear how many are in the newly evacuated zone.

#عاجل ‼️ إلى جميع المتواجدين في المنطقة الجنوبية الغربية من دير البلح، في البلوكات 130، 132-134، 136-139، 2351، بما في ذلك المتواجدين داخل الخيام الموجودة في المنطقة

⭕️يواصل جيش الدفاع العمل بقوة كبيرة لتدمير قدرات العدو والبنى التحتية الإرهابية في المنطقة حيث يوسّع أنشطته في… pic.twitter.com/dcDvPcJLC1

— افيخاي ادرعي (@AvichayAdraee) July 20, 2025