Tel Aviv/Gaza, 14 October 2023 (dpa/MIA) - The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) set a new window for people in the northern Gaza Strip to flee to safety and head along a route given on a map without harm.

People should flee between 10 am (0700 GMT) and 4 pm.

Beit Hanoun residents should go to Khan Younis and further instructions will follow, an army spokesman wrote in Arabic on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter.

"Rest assured that Hamas leaders have taken care of themselves and are seeking protection from attacks in the region," he added. Israel has repeatedly accused Hamas of using civilians as human shields.

There has been extensive criticism of Israel's repeated demands that people evacuate Gaza, and the United Nations called on Israel to revoke its order, pointing to the threat of a "catastrophic situation." Saudi Arabia and Egypt echoed these criticisms.

The order by the Israeli military that more than 1 million Palestinians leave the north of the coastal strip is seen as an indication that the IDF plans an imminent ground offensive.

Photo: MIA Archive