The civil defence agency in Gaza told AFP on Friday that about 40 bodies had been found in an initial search of two Gaza City districts after Israeli troops ended an offensive.

Civil defence spokesperson Mahmud Bassal said the bodies were found in the Tal al-Hawa and al-Sinaa districts. The agency and residents said Israeli troops had pulled out after days of battles with Hamas militants but this was not immediately confirmed by the military.

“Up to now, about 40 bodies have been found,” Bassal said, adding that dozens more were feared buried under the rubble.

Israel has warned virtually all of Gaza City that it was now a “dangerous” combat zone.

“There are many calls for help but we just cannot reach them,” Bassal said.

“We just do not have enough crews.”

He added that the Sabha Medical Centre, near the Gaza City district of Shujaiya, which provides care for 60,000 residents, had been destroyed in the new fighting.

“And the corpses under the rubble speed up the spread of disease,” he added.