Israeli military strikes killed at least 12 Palestinians across the Gaza Strip, most of them in the town of Beit Lahiya on the northern edge, medics said, as the army issued new evacuation orders in the south of the tiny enclave, Reuters reports.

Medics said eight people had been killed in a series of strikes in Beit Lahiya — one of two towns where the army has been operating since October — while four others were killed elsewhere in Gaza City.

The Israeli army issued evacuation orders to residents in northern districts of Khan Younis, a town in the south of the Gaza Strip, citing the firing of rockets by militants from those areas. The orders prompted the hurried exodus of families, mostly before dawn, in a westerly direction.

“For your own safety, you must evacuate the area immediately and move to the humanitarian zone,” the army said in its statement, posted on X.