ISRAELI airstrikes killed at least 70 people as they pounded northern and southern Gaza yesterday, local health officials claim.

Health bosses say total death toll topped 70

- BY CHRIS HUGHES

Those killed by strikes around Jabaliya alone included 22 children, hospitals and the health ministry reported.

The overnight shelling and strikes from warplanes were said to be some of the worst attacks in recent weeks in the stepped-up war that Israel maintains is targeting Hamas fighters.

Israel's military warned Jabaliya residents to evacuate late on Tuesday, citing militant infrastructure in the area, including rocket launchers.

CRATER

A photo from Khan Yunis showed a boy beside a destroyed bus and a huge shell crater, and a woman in the city was seen carrying a child's body.