But Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ordered negotiators to stay involved in indirect talks with Hamas.
Israel says it has launched a major military operation in the Gaza Strip to pressure Hamas to release remaining hostages, while Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told a negotiating team to remain in Qatar for indirect talks with the militant group.
Defence Minister Israel Katz said Operation Gideon Chariots was being led with "great force". Netanyahu had vowed to escalate pressure with the aim of destroying the militant group that has ruled Gaza for nearly two decades.
The military operation in the Palestinian territory came a day after US President Donald Trump concluded his Middle East trip without a visit to Israel. There had been hope that his visit could increase the chances of a ceasefire deal or the resumption of humanitarian aid to Gaza, which Israel has prevented for more than two months.
READ MORE: At least 27 dead as storms, tornadoes tear through US states
An Israel official said that Netanyahu was in constant contact throughout the day with the negotiating team in Doha, Qatar, and US envoy Steve Witkoff, and instructed the team to remain there. The official spoke on condition of anonymity, because he wasn't authorised to discuss the sensitive negotiations with the media.
Hamas, which released an Israeli-American hostage as a goodwill gesture before Trump's trip, insists on a deal that ends the war and leads to the withdrawal of Israeli forces – something Israel said that it won't agree to.
Israel's army said on social media it wouldn't stop until the hostages are returned and the militant group is dismantled. Israel believes as many as 23 hostages in Gaza are still alive, although Israeli authorities have expressed concern for the status of three of them.
READ MORE: Russian drone strike in Ukraine kills 9 people, officials say
More than 150 people had been killed in Israeli strikes in the last 24 hours, according to Gaza's Health Ministry. It said more than 3000 have been killed since Israel broke a January ceasefire on March 18.
On Saturday afternoon, an Israeli strike killed at least four children in the Jabaliya refugee camp in the north, according to al-Awda Hospital, which received the bodies. Seven others were wounded in the strike, which hit a house. A later strike in Jabaliya killed four, the hospital said.
"This is unacceptable. Until when? Until we all die?" asked a sweating Naji Awaisa as he and others fled Jabaliya with their belongings down streets lined with shattered buildings. Smoke from airstrikes rose in the distance.
READ MORE: Man throws final insults as he is jailed for 25 years for stabbing famous author
Airstrikes around Deir al-Balah in central Gaza killed 14 people, with the bodies arriving at al-Aqsa hospital. One strike on a house killed eight people, including parents and four children.
A strike hit outside a school sheltering displaced people in Gaza City, killing four, the Gaza Health Ministry's emergency service said.
There was no immediate Israeli comment on the strikes. A separate statement said that the military had killed dozens of fighters while dismantling an "underground route" in northern Gaza.
Hundreds of protesters rallied on Saturday night in Tel Aviv, some holding photos of Palestinian children killed in Gaza, with others demanding a deal to end the war and bring all hostages home.
"Let me be crystal clear. All of Israeli society, left, right, secular, religious, stands united in calling for a hostage deal. To miss this moment for a deal would be a betrayal of history, a stain that will never fade," Dalia Kushnir-Horn, sister-in-law of hostage Eitan Horn, told the crowd.
Month three of Israel's blockade
Gaza is in the third month of an Israeli blockade with no food, water, fuel or other goods entering the territory of more than two million people. Food security experts say Gaza will be in famine if the blockade isn't lifted.
Earlier this week, a new humanitarian organisation that has US backing to take over aid delivery said that it expects to begin operations by the end of the month, after what it described as key agreements with Israeli officials. The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation identified several US military veterans, former humanitarian coordinators and security contractors to lead the effort.
Many in the humanitarian community, including the UN, said that they won't participate, because the system doesn't align with humanitarian principles and won't be able to meet the needs of Palestinians in Gaza.
Tom Fletcher, the UN humanitarian chief, said Friday that there's already an aid delivery plan with 160,000 pallets of supplies ready to move: "It is ready to be activated – today – if we are simply allowed to do our jobs."
The war in Gaza began on October 7, 2023, when Hamas-led militants attacked southern Israel, killing 1200 people and abducting 251 others. Israel's retaliatory offensive has killed more than 53,000 Palestinians, many of them women and children, according to Gaza's Health Ministry, which doesn't differentiate between civilians and combatants.
DOWNLOAD THE 9NEWS APP: Stay across all the latest in breaking news, sport, politics and the weather via our news app and get notifications sent straight to your smartphone. Available on the Apple App Store and Google Play.
Pope Leo XIV takes his first popemobile ride through St Peter's Square
Albanese to tackle trade talks after Pope Leo's inauguration
Son charged over attack which left mother, 47, fighting for life in Sydney
Flood warning as rain and wind hit parts of NSW coast
Two dead after Mexican Navy sailing ship hits Brooklyn Bridge in New York City
The cheapest inner-city suburbs to get onto the property ladder
Strongman ex-leader wins landslide vote - while on trial at the Hague
Man charged after allegedly climbing cruise ship's moorings in Sydney
Key moments from Vladimir's Putin's 25 years in power
At least 27 dead as storms, tornadoes tear through US states
US clinic explosion 'act of terrorism', FBI says
'To easy lol': Ten inmates escape from US jail through hole in cell wall
US Department vets TV show where immigrants would compete for citizenship
What you can expect from the weather this winter
Stunning photography shows what working as a scientist can look like
Rare flooding event creates striking oasis in the outback
