An Israeli strike has killed 38 people in Khan Younis, Gaza health officials said.

The strike on Friday morning comes as Israel’s military ratchets up offensives in Lebanon and Gaza.

The deaths reported by Gaza health officials were the latest in the southern Gaza city of Khan Younis, where people have in recent days lined up for bread outside the city’s only bakery in operation.

Palestinians who were killed or injured were taken to the European and Nasser Hospitals. Records from the European hospital showed at least 15 members from al-Farra family were killed, including 13 children.

Israeli soldiers fire a mortar shell from southern Israel towards the Gaza Strip
Israel is stepping up its campaign (AP)

Gaza Civil Defence spokesperson Mahmoud Bassal posted a video of rescuers recovering the bodies of nine children from the Al-Farra family in Al Manara area.

The Israeli attack, which included airstrikes and shelling, according to health officials, targeted several residential buildings in areas east of Khan Younis Governorate. Six members of the Abdeen family were also killed, according to health officials.

The assaults have continued despite international pressure for a ceasefire and growing worries about supply shortages.

They come a day after US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said that Israel had accomplished its objective of “effectively dismantling” Hamas and implored both sides to revive negotiations.

Destruction left by the Israeli air and ground offensive is seen in Khan Younis, Gaza Strip
Khan Younis has been a scene of devastation during the war (AP)

Hamas-led militants stormed into southern Israel on October 7 2023, killing some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducting another 250. Around 100 hostages are still inside Gaza, a third of whom are believed to be dead.

Israel’s retaliatory offensive has killed over 42,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza’s health ministry, which does not say how many were combatants but says women and children make up more than half the fatalities.

The Israeli military says it has killed more than 17,000 fighters, without providing evidence.