Hamas is beating Gazan civilians who attempt to evacuate to the Al-Mawasi humanitarian area from Jabalya, a Palestinian resident of Gaza told an IDF Unit 504 representative in an audio recording shared by the military on Monday afternoon.
Unit 504 is an IDF human intelligence unit.
“The problem is that when we follow the army’s instructions and try to go to Al-Mawasi, there are people who come out against us and start hitting us with sticks, telling us “go back, go back,” the Gazan civilian said to a military representative in the IDF recording.
The military reported that the development came as troops of the IDF’s 162nd Division operated against Hamas terrorists in the area.
'What should we do?'
“What should we do?” the resident asked. “We want to leave. We took our belongings and wanted to leave, and now they’re hitting us and telling us to “go home, go home,” what should we do?”
In response, the IDF representative asked whether it was Israeli troops or Hamas terrorists beating the civilians with sticks.
“Hamas, Hamas,” the Gazan responded, adding that the terrorists were continuing to send civilians back to the area from which they were attempting to evacuate.
“While the IDF makes every effort to move civilians away from the battlefield, Hamas continues to make every effort to keep civilians in the line of fire,” the IDF stated.
Israeli forces have 'trapped' civilians in north Gaza, UN rights office says
Despite statements by Gazan civilians, the United Nations human rights office said on Monday it was appalled by more than a week of heavy Israeli strikes on northern Gaza where it said tens of thousands of civilians are trapped without food or supplies.
"In the shadow of the escalation of hostilities across the Middle East, the Israeli military appears to be cutting off North Gaza completely from the rest of the Gaza Strip and conducting hostilities with absolute disregard for the lives and security of Palestinian civilians," the rights office said.
It added in a statement that it had received reports that Israeli forces had erected sand mounds at a key juncture, effectively "sealing off North Gaza" and firing on those attempting to flee.
Hamas has a history of attacking dissidents
Palestinian dissidents against Hamas have routinely been attacked or murdered by members of the terror group in the past.
In September, Gazan activists and whistleblowers told the New York Times about the abusive treatment Hamas inflicts on civilians.
Amin Abed, a Palestinian who found bullets on his doorstep in response to speaking out against Hamas, told the NYT that he was hospitalized after terrorists beat him with hammers and metal bars.
“At any moment, I can be killed by the Israeli occupation, but I can face the same fate at the hands of those who’ve been ruling us for 17 years,” he said from a UAE hospital bed. “They almost killed me, those killers and criminals.”