Israel and Hamas accuse each other of breaching a truce that began in mid-January and had offered a respite for Gaza's 2.3 million residents after 17 months of war that has reduced the enclave to rubble and forced the majority of its population to displace multiple times.

Israel launched airstrikes across the Gaza Strip early Tuesday, killing more than 400 Palestinians, local health officials said, and shattering a ceasefire in place since January with its deadliest bombardment in a 17-month war with Hamas.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned on Tuesday that massive overnight strikes on Gaza were “only the beginning” and that future negotiations with Hamas “will take place only under fire”.