Israel Says 80,000 People Left Northern Gaza Thursday

Israeli troops advanced toward the heart of Gaza City, while Israeli officials said 80,000 residents traveled south Thursday, the largest movement so far in the five days since the humanitarian corridor was opened.

The military said it was closing in on the “heart of intelligence and operational activities” of militant group Hamas in an area of Gaza City near Al-Shifa hospital. The zone, the military said, was home to a war room for directing fighting, a large training ground and munitions factories used to make rockets, antitank missiles, drones and other explosives. Kindergartens and mosques were nearby, the military said.