"Since dawn today, at least 17 citizens have been martyred in Israeli attacks on homes and citizens in the northern Gaza Strip," said Gaza's civil defence agency spokesman Mahmoud Bassal.

Among those killed were six in the town of Beit Lahia and four in Jabalia. They included women and children, he said.

Muhammad Salha, director of Al-Awda Hospital in Jabalia, described the situation as "horrific."

He said in a statement the only general surgeon left in northern Gaza was working at his hospital, where more than 70 percent of injuries required urgent surgical intervention.

Since October 6, Israel's military has conducted a sweeping air and ground assault in northern Gaza, particularly in the areas of Jabalia, Beit Lahia and Beit Hanoun, where UN agencies have described the situation as "apocalyptic."

"The Israeli occupation has continued around-the-clock bombardment of civilian homes, especially in northern Gaza," Bassal said on Sunday.

"This shelling has led to the destruction of numerous buildings and infrastructure... Over 100,000 residents are in northern Gaza without food, water or medicine," he added.

He told AFP that residents were "being bombed without prior warning."

Separately, medics in Gaza in the south said 13 Palestinians were killed in several Israeli strikes on Sunday.

Medics from Gaza's health ministry reported "the martyrdom of nine citizens, including four children, in an Israeli air strike east of Khan Younis."

The civil defence agency said it retrieved three bodies, of a woman and her two children, after an Israeli raid on Rafah's eastern Khirbet al-Adas neighbourhood.

One more person was also reported killed, the agency added.

*This story was edited by Ahram Online.