Gaza’s civil defence agency has said two pre-dawn Israeli air strikes killed 26 people in Gaza City, amid fierce battles between troops and fighters across the Palestinian territory, AFP reports.

There was no immediate comment from the Israeli military, while AFP was unable to independently verify the details of the two reported strikes.

Civil Defence Agency spokesman Mahmud Bassal told AFP that one strike hit a family’s house, killing 16 people, while 10 others died when a mosque was struck in the second strike.

Bassal said the dead included at least 15 children, including 10 who were killed when their family’s house was hit in the Al-Daraj neighbourhood of Gaza City.

Five children died when their school inside a mosque complex was hit, he said, adding that rescue teams had pulled out several wounded from the strikes.