Mass evacuations of north Gaza continue

Thousands of people evacuated the northern part of the Gaza Strip on Wednesday at the urging of the Israel Defense Forces, the Israeli military said after cutting the strip in half as operations ramp up in the area. 

Starting at 10 a.m. local time, thousands of residents from the north Gaza Strip headed south through an IDF corridor, officials said. The safe passageway was set to close at 2 p.m., but in response to the large number of people who came to evacuate, the IDF extended the time to leave until 3 p.m.

The IDF also said that it destroyed 130 Hamas terror tunnels since Oct. 7, when Hamas, which governs the Gaza Strip, invaded Israel and killed more than 1,400 people, including more than 30 U.S. citizens.

The IDF additionally said Wednesday that it has eliminated Hamas' weapons and industries head, Moshen Abu Zina. 

Meanwhile, the Al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of Hamas said on the social media platform Telegram that it is bombing vehicles in southern Gaza, but it did not specify whether the vehicles were military or civilian.

Follow Madeleine Hubbard on X or Instagram.