Gaza, Nov 3 (IANS): At least 42 Palestinians were killed and more than 150 injured in Israeli air and artillery bombardment on Nuseirat refugee camp in the central Gaza Strip, Palestinian medical sources said.

The Israeli army has been bombarding inhabited houses in Nuseirat with both aircraft and artillery since Friday morning, said Palestinian security sources on Saturday.

The Gaza government media office condemned the strikes, describing them as the "deliberate targeting of civilians, including children and women," and called on the international community to pressure Israel to halt these actions against Gaza's civilians.

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said in a statement on Saturday that it conducted operations in Rafah and central Gaza to kill militants, dismantle militant infrastructure, and locate weapons.

Israel has been conducting a large-scale offensive against Hamas in the Gaza Strip in retaliation for a Hamas attack across the southern Israeli border on October 7, 2023, during which about 1,200 people were killed and nearly 250 taken hostage.

The Palestinian death toll from ongoing Israeli attacks in the Gaza Strip has risen to 43,314, according to a statement from Gaza-based health authorities on Saturday.