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Israel launched new strikes against Hamas in Gaza early on Tuesday and promised "increasing military force" after talks on on further hostage releases stalled.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said in a statement that it had instructed the military to strike Hamas across the coastal enclave.
The statement blamed Hamas’s repeated refusals to release hostages and its rejection of all offers it received from the US presidential envoy Steve Witkoff and mediators.
In a post on Telegram, the Israeli army said it was "conducting extensive strikes on terror targets belonging to the Hamas terrorist organisation in the Gaza Strip", adding that further details would follow.
"Israel will, from now on, act against Hamas with increasing military strength," the Prime Minister's office said.
Gaza’s Ministry of Health said at least 44 people were killed in the new wave of air strikes.
The strikes come after nearly two months of a ceasefire to pause the 17-month-long war in which dozens of hostages were released for nearly 2,000 Palestinian detainees.
Ceasefire negotiations in Qatar were at a standstill on Monday, with neither side willing to make the compromises needed to reach a deal, sources told The National.
In a statement following the strikes, Hamas blamed Israel and Mr Netanyahu for breaking the ceasefire.
"Netanyahu and his extremist government are making a decision to overturn the ceasefire agreement, exposing prisoners in Gaza to an unknown fate," the group said, demanding that mediators and the international community hold Israel responsible.
In a brief statement, Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz said “the gates of hell will open in Gaza” if hostages are not released.
“We will not stop fighting until all of our hostages are home and we have achieved all of the war goals,” he said.
The Israeli military said it was prepared to continue attacks against Hamas commanders and infrastructure in Gaza for as long as needed and that it would expand the campaign beyond air strikes.
The strikes also come after Israel carried out attacks in Deraa, Syria. Two civilians were killed and 19 injured in the air strikes, according to Syrian state media.
The Israeli army confirmed the strikes, which were the latest attacks on Syria's military infrastructure. It said it struck military headquarters and sites containing weapons and equipment.