Israel increases strikes on Gaza as two more hostages freed

Damage caused by the Israeli bombardment of Gaza City (Abed Khaled/AP)

Israel has escalated its bombardment of targets in the Gaza Strip, the military said on Tuesday, ahead of an expected ground invasion against Hamas militants that the US fears could spark a wider conflict in the region.

The stepped-up attacks, and the rapidly rising death toll in Gaza, came as Hamas released two elderly Israeli women who were among the hundreds of hostages it captured during its devastating attack on towns in southern Israel on October 7.