The Israeli army asked residents of six districts west of the city of Khan Yunis to evacuate to the "humanitarian zone" of Moassi by the sea, "via Al-Bahar Street".
Military spokesman Avichai Adraee made this known in Arabic, adding that the invitation is "for the safety of residents".
Khan Yunis, a Hamas stronghold in the south of the Strip, has been completely surrounded by the army since this morning.
Previously, Israeli ground forces announced that they had completed the encirclement of Khan Yunis, the main city in the southern sector of the Gaza Strip, and strengthened their presence there.
Parachute units from the Givati brigade and armored vehicles participated in the operation, assisted by commando units.
That area - the spokesperson added - is considered a stronghold of the 'Khan Yunis Brigade' of Hamas.
During the operations, the spokesperson added, ''we eliminated dozens of terrorists and took possession of weapons warehouses''.
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