The Israeli military on Thursday claimed that airstrikes were launched from the Gaza Strip aimed at Central Israel and they had set off air raid sirens.
This comes as the first offensive from the side of Hamas since Israel ended a ceasefire with a surprise bombardment of the territory on Tuesday and killed at least 400 people including children.
Gaza's Health Ministry informed that Israeli strikes overnight into Thursday have killed at least 85 people, mostly women and children. The strikes hit multiple homes in the middle of the night as the victims slept.
Zaher al-Waheidi, the official in charge of records for the ministry, said a total of 592 people have been killed since Israel ended a ceasefire with a surprise bombardment early Tuesday.
The Israeli military have announced that it will no longer allow Palestinians to enter northern Gaza from the south, restoring a blockade on the north it maintained for much of the war before January's ceasefire.
In an announcement Thursday, it warned people against using the territory's main north-south highway to enter or leave the north and said only passage to the south would be allowed along Gaza's coastal road.
Israel resumed heavy strikes across Gaza on Tuesday, shattering a ceasefire that had halted the war and facilitated the release of more than two dozen hostages. Israel blamed the renewed fighting on Hamas because the militant group rejected a new proposal that departed from their signed agreement.
More than 400 Palestinians were killed on Tuesday alone, mostly women and children, according to Gaza's Health Ministry. There have been no reports of Hamas firing rockets or carrying out other attacks.
