Israel flattens high-rise as it tells Gaza City residents to flee

AN ISRAELI strike flattened a high-rise building in Gaza City at the weekend - the second in as many days - after the military warned people to move to a “humanitarian zone” ahead ofa planned offensive against the urban hub.

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Israel has been warning for weeks of a new assault on the territory's largest city, without issuing a timeline.

It has stepped up air strikes and ground operations on the city’s outskirts, sparking fears it could worsen already dire conditions.

At the weekend, Israeli aircraft dropped thousands of leaflets on western neighbourhoods calling on residents to evacuate, witnesses and a journalist said.

Nafez Anis, who has been living in a tent with his family in Gaza City, said he had read the leaflet, but was not planning on leaving.

“Where should we go?” he said. “We will wait, and when we see Israeli tanks approaching here, we will leave”

Gaza civil defence agency spokesperson Mahmud Bassal said that 56 Palestinians had been killed by Israeli fire during the day, including 19 near an aid distribution centre in the north.

When contacted, the Israeli military requested precise timeframes and coordinates to look into the reports.