ANKARA

The Israeli army has committed 15 massacres against Palestinian families in Gaza over the last two days, a Palestinian official in Gaza's administration said on Monday.

"Contrary to (Israeli) occupation claims of targeting resistance capabilities, the (Israeli) occupation army committed 15 massacres by bombing their homes directly without any warning," Salama Marouf, chairman of the media office in Gaza, said in a statement.

Marouf added that the Israeli army is entirely to blame for these massacres of civilians.

"This difficult reality (...) necessitates an urgent action by the international community's relevant organizations to curb the (Israeli) occupation which is following the scorched-earth policy within densely residential areas," he added.

Early on Monday, the Israeli army confirmed that it had struck over 500 targets in Gaza during overnight raids, claiming they were Hamas and Islamic Jihad targets.

The Gaza-based resistance group Hamas launched Operation Al-Aqsa Flood against Israel early Saturday, firing a barrage of rockets. It said the surprise attack was in response to the storming of Al-Aqsa Mosque in occupied East Jerusalem and increased settler violence.

In retaliation, the Israeli army launched Operation Swords of Iron against Hamas in the Gaza Strip, killing nearly 500 Palestinians and wounding at least 2,751 others.

At least 700 Israelis have been killed and over 2,300 others wounded in the fighting, according to the Israeli Health Ministry.