DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip — Israeli airstrikes pounded northern and southern Gaza on Wednesday, killing at least 70 people, including almost two dozen children, according to local hospitals and health officials, a day after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said there was “no way” he would halt Israel’s offensive in the Palestinian territory before Hamas is defeated.

At least 50 people, including 22 children, were killed in strikes around Jabaliya in northern Gaza alone, according to hospitals and Gaza’s Health Ministry.

The strikes came after Hamas on Monday released an Israeli American hostage, a gesture that some thought could lay the groundwork for a ceasefire, and as U.S. President Donald Trump visited Saudi Arabia during a multiday trip to Gulf countries.

Israel’s military refused to comment on the strikes. It warned Jabaliya residents to evacuate late Tuesday, citing militant infrastructure in the area.

In Jabaliya, rescue workers smashed through collapsed concrete slabs using hand tools, lit by the light of cellphones, to remove children’s bodies.

— The Associated Press