TEL AVIV, May 6. /TASS/. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) has begun the evacuation of civilians from the southern Gazan city of Rafah as part of preparations for a military operation, the Times of Israel reports.

According to the newspaper, "the Israeli military has begun calling on Palestinians to evacuate the eastern neighborhoods of Rafah, those close to the Israeli border, ahead of a planned offensive in the area in the southern Gaza Strip."

Civilians are being urged to move to an expanded humanitarian zone in the al-Mawasi and Khan Younis areas, the paper notes.