TEL AVIV, October 29. /TASS/. The Israeli authorities have again called on civilians in the northern areas of the Gaza Strip to evacuate to the south amid the expansion of the ground operation, Israel Defense Forces (IDF) Spokesman Daniel Hagari said.

"Today we reiterate the urgency of this warning. Civilians in the northern Gaza Strip and Gaza City should temporarily move south of Wadi Gaza to safer areas where they can receive water, food and medicine," he pointed out.

Tensions flared up again in the Middle East on October 7 when militants from the radical Palestinian group Hamas staged a surprise attack on Israeli territory from the Gaza Strip, killing residents of Israeli border settlements and taking more than 200 hostages, including children, women and the elderly. Hamas described its attack as a response to the aggressive actions of Israeli authorities against the Al-Aqsa Mosque on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem’s Old City. Israel has announced a total blockade of the Gaza Strip and has been delivering air strikes on Gaza as well as some parts of Lebanon and Syria. Clashes are also underway in the West Bank.