The ramped up strikes began just hours after the Trump administration brokered the release on Monday of Edan Alexander in direct talks with Hamas.

In the meantime, Israeli air strikes have killed at least 16 Palestinians across the Gaza Strip, following a deadly 24-hour period in which more than 100 people lost their lives, according to medical officials.

Gaza's civil defense agency said two Israeli air strikes killed at least 19 people in the war-ravaged Palestinian territory's north early Monday. "Our teams found 15 martyrs and 10 wounded, mostly children and women,