Reporter in Gaza describes ‘total chaos’ in Strip amid IDF’s expanded operation

While Palestinian reports from Gaza are scarce after internet and phone services collapsed during Israeli bombardment last night amid the Israel Defense Forces’ expanded ground operation, a reporter for the BBC says there is “total chaos” in the Strip.

“There was a huge bombardment in the north of Gaza Strip on a scale we’ve never seen before,” writes Rushdi Abualouf.

“At the hospital here, ambulance drivers told me they couldn’t communicate with anyone, so they were just driving in the direction of the explosions,” he writes.

“There’s been panic everywhere, even here in Khan Younis, where the bombing was less, as people try to reach family members in other areas to check they are safe, but the phones have been cut off,” Abualouf writes.

War erupted after Hamas’s October 7 massacre, which saw some 2,500 terrorists storm the border into Israel from the Gaza Strip, killing some 1,400 people and seizing over 230 hostages of all ages under the cover of a deluge of thousands of rockets fired at Israeli towns and cities. The vast majority of those killed as gunmen seized border communities were civilians — including babies, children and the elderly.

Israel says its Gaza offensive is aimed at destroying Hamas’s infrastructure, and has vowed to eliminate the entire terror group, which rules the Strip. It says it is targeting all areas where Hamas operates, while seeking to minimize civilian casualties.