Israel severs Gaza in two as Palestinian death toll ‘passes 10,000 mark’

Palestinians evacuate families from their homes following an Israeli airstrike in Jabaliya refugee camp, on the outskirts of Gaza City (Mohammed Alaswd/AP)

Israeli forces severed northern Gaza from the rest of the besieged territory and pounded it with intense airstrikes overnight, setting the stage for an expected push into the dense confines of Gaza City and an even bloodier phase of the month-old war.

Already, the Palestinian death toll passed 10,000, the Health Ministry in Hamas-run Gaza said on Monday.