Israel orders civilians out of central Gaza ahead of new campaign
The Israeli military on Sunday issued an evacuation order for Palestinians in the central Gaza Strip, warning of imminent action against Hamas militants in an area "where it has not operated before."
The military's Arabic-language spokesman Avichay Adraee said in a post on X that residents and displaced Palestinians sheltering in the Deir el-Balah area should evacuate immediately.
Israel was "expanding its activities" around Deir el-Balah, including "in an area where it has not operated before", Adraee said, telling Palestinians to "move south toward the al-Mawasi area" on the Mediterranean coast "for your safety".
Most of Gaza's population of more than two million people have been displaced at least once during the war, which is now in its 22nd month, with repeated Israeli evacuation calls covering large parts of the coastal territory.
The U.N. humanitarian agency OCHA said in January that more than 80 percent of the Gaza Strip was under unrevoked Israeli evacuation orders.
Families of hostages held in Gaza since Hamas' October 7, 2023 attack on Israel that triggered the war said they feared the expansion of the Israeli offensive could harm their loved ones.
In a statement released by a campaign group, they called for Israeli authorities to "urgently explain to Israeli citizens and families what the fighting plan is and how exactly it protects the abductees who are still in Gaza".
On the ground, Gaza's civil defense agency told AFP on Sunday that Israeli strikes overnight killed at least seven people in Gaza City and in parts of the territory's south.
Delegations from Israel and militant group Hamas have spent the last two weeks in indirect talks for a 60-day ceasefire in Gaza and the release of 10 living hostages.
Of the 251 hostages taken during Hamas' 2023 attack, 49 are still being held in Gaza, including 27 the Israeli military says are dead.
Families rallied in Israel's economic hub of Tel Aviv on Saturday, calling on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and U.S. President Donald Trump to secure the return of the captives and end the war.
Meanwhile a military statement said Israeli forces had stepped up ground operations in the Jabalia area of northern Gaza, killing "dozens of terrorists" and dismantling "hundreds of terrorist infrastructure."
"Underground terror tunnels" in the area stretching 2.7 kilometers (just over 1.5 miles) some 20 meters underground were located and dismantled, it said.
Hamas' 2023 attack led to the deaths of 1,219 people, most of them civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official figures.
Israeli's retaliatory offensive has killed at least 58,765 Palestinians, most of them civilians, according to Hamas-run Gaza's health ministry.
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