"Today we flee again' Palestinians seek safety from strikes on Rafah

Under a blazing summer sun, tens of thousands of Palestinians fled Israeli bombardment and clashes with Hamas militants in Rafah yesterday, choking roads with carts, bicycles, pickup trucks and wheelchairs.

- Jason Burke, Malak A Tantesh

More than 150,000 people have now left Gaza's southernmost city since receiving warnings on Monday from the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) of an imminent military operation, with most moving after airstrikes and fighting later intensified.

Among those fleeing yesterday was Iyad Jarboa, an acting instructor and theatre director who left his home in eastern Rafah on Thursday with his family to seek safety in the city of Khan Younis, six miles away.

"We have been suffering since the beginning of the war, but these last nights were the most difficult of all, with bombing of all kinds everywhere and none of us able to sleep," said Jarboa, 45.

"I was worried that my children and my wife would be killed, but also that if we left it too late, we would never escape."

His brother, sister-in-law and aunt have all sustained serious injuries during the conflict.

"We only have two wheelchairs, so I have to carry one of them on my back and so it would be impossible to move at all if the situation worsened," Jarboa said.

There has been no panic, humanitarian officials in Rafah said, just huge numbers of people packing whatever they have in preparation for yet another move. Many have been displaced many times as they have fled successive Israeli military offensives.

A million people who sought shelter in Rafah, after fleeing fighting or after their homes were destroyed, turned the small city of 300,000 into a sprawling, overcrowded encampment.

One aid official said: "There are a lot of people on the move today and continued bombardments ... It's all orderly, with people tidying up after themselves."