Hamas using civilians as "human shields" by trying to stop evacuations, IDF says

By Akanksha Sharma and Sophie Jeong, Oct 14: Haas is trying to stop Palestinian civilians from evacuating northern parts of Gaza, turning them into "human shields," Israel Defense Forces spokesperson Lt. Col. Jonathan Conricus said Saturday.

The IDF on Friday instructed civilians in and around Gaza City – more than 1 million people – to move to southern areas of Gaza.

Conricus said it was “worrying” that Hamas "has stopped" and "tried to stop Palestinian civilians from evacuating" northern Gaza using messages, checkpoints and stops on the ground, according to international media reports.

Asked on CNN whether the evacuation suggested Israel was clearing the way for a ground incursion — and how long the IDF would wait for that — Conricus replied that the IDF would "assess the situation on the ground."

“(We need to) see how many civilians are left in the area. And understand how many of them have been blocked by Hamas from actually evacuating," he said.

"And we've seen active efforts by Hamas to block these people from leaving, which I think is appalling at a whole new level. And once we see that the situation will be permissible for significant combat operations, then they will commence."

He said civilians should leave the area for their own security “and return only when we tell them that it is safe to do so.”

The IDF had seen “significant movement of Palestinian civilians toward the south,” Conricus added, saying Gaza residents were “doing the clever thing, moving out of a dangerous area."