Israel tells Gazans to temporarily vacate southern Khan Younis areas

The Israeli military told Palestinians to temporarily evacuate southern neighborhoods of Gaza's Khan Younis region so it could "forcefully operate" there, telling them to relocate to a humanitarian area in Al-Mawasi, a statement from the military said on Saturday. The fighting, more than nine months since the start of Israel's invasion of Gaza following the Oct. 7 attack, underlined the difficulty the Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) has in eliminating fighters of the militant Islamist group amid continued resistance. On Friday the military said troops battled Palestinian fighters in Khan Younis, a city in the south of the enclave, and destroyed tunnels and other infrastructure, as they sought to suppress small militant units that have continued to hit troops with mortar fire.