PA Prime Minister tells Gazans to ignore Israel’s evacuation warnings prior to bombings to serve as human shields for Hamas
PA Prime Minister Muhammad Shtayyeh: “The [PA] government warns against the [Israeli] military order (i.e., warnings) that seeks to expel our people in the Gaza Strip and the creation of a new Nakba (i.e., “the catastrophe,” the establishment of the State of Israel), and we emphasize that our people will not leave its land and will not be expelled from it, regardless of how great the sacrifices may be.”
[Official PA TV, Oct. 16, 2023]
PA Prime Minister Muhammad Shtayyeh made this statement in response to Israel’s warnings to Gazan civilians to evacuate the northern Gaza Strip and move south, prior to a planned Israeli ground campaign to eliminate Hamas’ terror infrastructure in Gaza, in response to Hamas’ terror war on Israel:
Hamas war on Israel October 2023 - At least 1,200 Israelis, including over 1,000 civilians, were murdered and over 4,800 wounded, in addition to approximately 244 who were abducted into the Gaza Strip (including 110 later released or liberated and at least 26 later killed), in a Hamas terror war that began when approximately 3,000 Hamas terrorists broke through Israel's security fence at the Gaza Strip border and launched a surprise attack, taking control of several Israeli towns and attacking a music festival on the Jewish holiday of Simchat Torah, which fell on the Sabbath, Oct. 7, 2023. During the massacre the terrorists tortured, raped, shot, beheaded, and burned their victims alive, murdering entire families and leaving at least 21 children without parents. Hamas terrorists also fired at least 5,000 rockets at Israeli population centers. In response, Israel launched Operation Iron Swords to counter the Hamas terror threat. Hezbollah terrorists in Lebanon joined Hamas' terror war starting from the following day, attacking Israel from the north. Occasional rocket launches and shootings continued from Lebanon throughout the war. A ceasefire and prisoner exchange deal began on Nov. 24, 2023, in which Israel agreed to release 150 terrorist prisoners, pause drone surveillance in the Gaza Strip, and allow movement between the northern and southern Gaza Strip, in return for 50 Israeli female and child hostages held by Hamas. The deal was subsequently extended with additional releases, until Hamas violated the agreement and resumed attacking on Dec. 1, 2023.