Israel also bombarded the Bureij refugee camp on the same night, where more than 100 Palestinians were killed.

Israel has killed more than 70 Palestinians on Sunday evening in an attack on the Al-Maghazi refugee camp in central Gaza, Palestinian media reported.

The occupation forces heavily bombarded a residential square in the densely-populated Al-Maghazi refugee camp while hindering the efforts of ambulances and rescue teams to reach the victims.

The Palestinian Red Crescent were barely able to transfer the victims to the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospitals under the intense Israeli bombardment, which mostly killed women and children, including a two-week-old baby, the Quds News Network reported.

“What is happening in Al Maghazi refugee camp is an ethnic cleansing of a heavily populated residential block,” Ashraf Al-Qudra, spokesman from Gaza’s health ministry said, as quoted by Quds News Network.

Gaza-based reporter Hind Khoudary separately said that “dozens remained trapped under the rubble in Al-Maghazi, one of the most densely populated areas in the centre of the Gaza Strip.

Al Jazeera’s correspondent in Rafah, Tareq Abu Azzoum, noted that Israel previously told Palestinians to evacuate to the Al-Maghazi camp, which he said has been “completely flattened.”

Disturbing footage of corpses piled up inside the hospital in Gaza have displayed the extent of the Israeli brutality at the Al-Maghazi camp, believed to be one of the bloodiest since October 7. 

Israel also bombarded the Bureij refugee camp during the same night, where more than 100 Palestinians were killed.

The targeting of densely populated areas comes under Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza that has reduced the beseiged enclave to rubble.

As of Monday morning, Israel has killed at least 20,424 Palestinians in Gaza while injuring 54,036 others, Palestinian health officials confirmed.

Euro-Med separately reported on December 23 that Israel killed at least 28,091 Palestinians, including 11,023 children. The figure is higher than the one reported by Gaza’s health authorities as it included victims believed to be still under the rubble.

On December 21, a probe by The New York Times revealed that Israel has used “one of its biggest and most destructive bombs” across areas in Gaza that the occupation forces said were “safe zones” for civilians. 

The Times had analysed video evidence and satellite imagery of Israel’s use of 2,000-pound bombs on the so-called safe areas in southern Gaza. The probe found that the weapons used by Israel are “almost never dropped by U.S. forces in densely populated areas anymore”.  

Speaking to the NYT, an Israeli military spokesperson downplayed the devastating toll of civilian lives in Gaza, maintaining that their priority was to destroy Hamas.

Israel, backed by the U.S, has continued to act with impunity while rejecting all attempts at reaching a ceasefire in Gaza. The U.S. has continued to block all ceasefire attempts at the United Nations.

On December 8, the U.S. used its veto power to block a UN Security Council ceasefire resolution.

Gaza only witnessed a week-long pause in bombardment between November 24 and December 1 under a truce that Qatar and Egypt had mediated.

The pause led to the release of at least 110 Israeli and foreign captives from Gaza, according to a Doha News tally. As part of the deal, Israel released 240 Palestinian women and children from Israeli prisons.

Israel said on December 2 that it had pulled out its negotiators from talks with Qatar, Egypt and the United States over a renewed pause, declaring an impasse in the negotiations. 

Tel Aviv then appeared to backtrack on its decision on December 16 with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu saying he was still speaking to Qatar and Egypt “regarding negotiations to release the hostages.”

Egypt has reportedly proposed another truce on Monday that would see a seven-to-10 day pause to allow the release of more Israeli and foreign captives from Gaza in exchange for Palestinian prisoners, multiple reports said, including Al Jazeera.

The Israeli war cabinet is scheduled to discuss the Egyptian proposal later on Monday.