Journalist Anas al-Sharif also reported from al-Ahli Arab hospital in Gaza after the attacks, saying that most of the victims were children and women. “These bags are filled with the remains of children from all over Gaza City. The scene is beyond words,” he said.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said he had ordered the aerial attacks after Hamas’s “repeated refusal” to release the remaining hostages it holds. “This is just the beginning,” he said.

An Israeli air strike killed three Palestinian men in Gaza on Monday as they tried to gather firewood, medics said, with no sign of progress in renewed talks on sustaining a ceasefire deal between Israel and Palestinian militant group Hamas.