‘We saw death’: families flee past tanks as Israel begins to storm Gaza City

Civilians given four-hour window to leave encircled capital but fears many are still trapped

• Israel and Hamas at war - latest updates

Waving white flags and holding their hands above their heads, Palestinian families fled past tanks waiting to storm Gaza City in the next stage of the war that the Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, has said will give Israel indefinite" control over the besieged territory.

Israel's military gave civilians inside the encircled city a four-hour window to leave on Tuesday, as its forces prepared to retake the biggest city in the strip.