Palestinians escape death in Rafah to 'miserable life' elsewhere in Gaza
On almost every street in western Khan Younis and Deir al-Balah, dozens of cars, trucks and animal-drawn carts are seen laden with luggage, mattresses and blankets.
They carry Palestinians fleeing Rafah, where Israel has expanded its aerial bombardment and ground attacks in recent weeks.
"We stayed in Rafah for around four miserable months with very little aid and no running water," said Ahmed Abu al-Enein, 39, who was originally displaced from Jabalia, in the northern Gaza Strip.
"But we had no other choice, either a miserable life or death."
Abu al-Enein is now on his fifth displacement, carrying his tent once again to Deir al-Balah, where he set up camp with his family near the seashore.
He is one of nearly 900,000 people who have been forced out of Rafah since early May due to a fresh Israeli ground assault there.
Rafah, the southernmost city in the Gaza Strip, had become a shelter for the internally displaced after Israel pushed them out of other parts of Gaza earlier in its ongoing military campaign, which has killed over 35,000 people and wounded 80,000 more.
For months, the small city bordering Egypt was turned into a large makeshift camp, with tents scattered all around.
Most UN and international organisations moved their bases to Rafah too and had their aid warehouses in the city.
Though it was still subject to repeated deadly air strikes and aid restrictions and struggled to accommodate the growing numbers of displaced people, the border city had become the best available option for people's survival.
But western Khan Younis and Deir al-Balah, to where Israel is now forcing Rafah’s displaced to move, have significantly weaker infrastructure, limited space and fewer service capabilities.
Read more: Palestinians escape death in Rafah to 'miserable life' elsewhere in Gaza
