Khan Younis, Israel - An Israeli attack on Gaza's Khan Younis killed scores of people and wounded hundreds more, health authorities in the devastated Palestinian territory announced.

Thousands of Palestinians fled the southern part of Gaza, displaced yet again by the latest evacuation order for areas including Al-Mawasi, which the Israeli army had repeatedly directed people to flee to.

"Due to the Israeli occupation's attacks and massacres in Khan Yunis governorate from the early hours of this morning until now, 70 people have been martyred and more than 200 wounded," the Gaza health ministry said.

The Government Media Office later updated the number of killed to 89.

Israel-Gaza War Hundreds of Jewish protesters take on Wall Street for Gaza: "Stop Arming Israel"

The Israeli military did not offer comment on the death toll when asked by AFP, saying only that its fighter jets and tanks "struck and eliminated terrorists in the area."

It is only the latest episode of mass killing in Al-Mawasi, where scores of Palestinians were killed earlier this month in a brutal assault that Israel said was meant to take out one Hamas commander.

Facing more displacement, Palestinians on Tuesday filled the dusty streets of Khan Younis with cars, motorbikes, donkey-drawn carts, and on foot, carrying what belongings they could.

Hassan Qudayh said his family fled in "panic".

"We were happily making breakfast for our children, as we had been safe for a month, only to be stunned by shells, warning leaflets and martyrs in the streets," he told AFPTV.

"This is the 14th or 15th time we've been displaced."

"Enough! We've been suffering for 10 months."

Yussef Abu Taimah from Al-Qarara in Khan Yunis said his family went to the humanitarian zone but found no space.

"Even the sidewalks are full of people and tents. We are tired and fed up. Enough of this displacement and migration."

Months of intermittent talks for the first ceasefire and prisoner swap since November have yielded little progress. Instead, Israel has been herding desperate Palestinians from one end of the strip to the other, all while relentlessly bombing every area.

Joke of the Day Joke of the Day for October 16, 2024: The best spooky season jokes to get your funny on

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who has rejected any deal that puts a permanent end to the fighting, will deliver a landmark speech to Congress on Wednesday.

With the top prosecutor of the International Criminal Court seeking an arrest warrant for him over accusations of war crimes and crimes against humanity, the far-right politician will hold a separate meeting with Vice President Kamala Harris, who looks set to replace Biden atop the Democratic ticket, an aide to Harris told AFP on Monday.

The visit comes days after a historic advisory opinion issued by the International Court of Justice, which ruled that Israel's decades-long occupation of Palestinian territories is illegal and constitutes, in part, apartheid.

The ICJ has already ordered Israel to halt its military operations in the south of Gaza as part of a genocide case brought by South Africa.

In response to the October 7 Hamas-led attacks on Israel that killed just over 1,100 people, the Israeli onslaught on Gaza – fueled by US weapons – has killed some 39,000 Palestinians, with many more feared dead under the rubble of the ravaged and starving strip.