At least 40 people have been killed in Israeli strikes on a humanitarian zone housing displaced Palestinians in southern Gaza.

The airstrikes early on Tuesday struck a tent encampment in the Mawasi coastal community, just west of Khan Younis, killing and injuring dozens.

The Israeli military described the strike as hitting “significant Hamas terrorists who were operating within a command-and-control centre”, without immediately providing additional evidence.

Footage circulating on social media showed deep craters at the site of the attack, the strewn ruins around it covered in shredded tents, a bicycle and other debris. 

Rescue workers used shovels to shift through the sand and bystanders used their hands to dig.

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