At least 43 people have been killed by Israeli strikes across Gaza since dawn on Friday, including at least 33 in the area of Gaza City in the Strip’s north, according to medical sources in the Hamas-run territory.

The figures could not be independently confirmed. The IDF did not immediately comment on the strikes reported in Gaza City, Khan Younis, Rafah and Deir El-Balah.

The reported strikes came as Israel has called on all Gaza City residents to flee south to a new “humanitarian zone” ahead of a major IDF offensive to take over the city, where the UN last month declared a famine in a report rejected by Israel.

New IDF assessments on Friday indicated that some 250,000 out of one million Palestinians who were in Gaza City have evacuated. The vast majority of Gaza’s roughly 2 million residents have been displaced at least once since the war there was sparked by the Hamas onslaught in southern Israel on October 7, 2023.

The military also said Friday it was working to expand the delivery of aid into Gaza amid the efforts to facilitate the evacuation of Palestinians from Gaza City.

As part of those efforts, the military said it was working to expand Crossing........

© The Times of Israel