Photo: MAHMUD HAMS / AFP / Getty Images
As Israeli forces prepare for a ground assault into Gaza, officials ordered over one million civilians to evacuate their homes and head south.
"The IDF issued an evacuation warning," a spokesperson for the Israel Defense Force told NBC News. "The evacuation must be carried out as soon as possible for their safety."
Many residents in Gaza are listening to the order and have been loading everything they can into their vehicles and heading south to escape the fighting.
The order has faced criticism from the United Nations, with officials concerned about the "devastating humanitarian consequences" of a mass exodus of people in one of the most densely populated areas in the world. In addition, Gaza has been under a "complete" seige as Israeli forces have cut off power, water, food, and fuel to Gaza.
As the war between Israel and Hamas approaches one week, over 3,000 people have been killed and over 10,000 injured. Officials have said that more than 1,800 people have been killed in the Gaza and the West Bank, while 1,300 have died in Israel.