Highest death toll

Israeli airstrikes cause Gaza’s highest death toll in over a week on Thursday

From CNN’s Kareem Khadder, Abeer Salman and Sana Noor Haq

Israeli bombings in Gaza have killed at least 81 Palestinians in the past 24 hours, according to health authorities in the enclave, as emergency crews reported heavy and intense strikes overnight into Thursday.

At least 188 other people have been injured, the Ministry of Health in Gaza said on Thursday. The number of people killed by Israeli attacks over the past day marked the highest daily death toll in 11 days, according to a CNN tally of recent figures from the health ministry.

Local emergency crews described scenes of relentless bombardment since Israel and Hamas reached a ceasefire and hostage release deal on Wednesday.

At least 77 Palestinians were killed – including 21 children and 25 women – since the ceasefire was announced, Mahmoud Basal, a spokesperson for Gaza’s Civil Defense, told CNN. More than 250 other people were injured, he said.

Among those killed on Thursday were two Palestinians at a school where displaced people sought refuge, in the Zeitoun neighborhood, central Gaza, according to the civil defense. In northern Gaza, Israeli aircraft struck a house near a mosque, killing at least two people, the civil defense said.

The Israeli military told CNN that it “targeted a Hamas terrorist in that area around that time.”

“Every time there is talk about a truce or a ceasefire, we witness an escalation in the intensity of the bombardment,” Basal said in a voice message.

The onslaught overnight came after an agreement was reached between Hamas and Israel on Wednesday – with the first phase expected to start on Sunday and last for six weeks. Human rights groups welcomed the news and ramped up calls for a permanent ceasefire.